Hammers, Nails & Wellbeing

I’ve spent most of the last 25 years in corporate jobs where the work was done in offices — usually sitting at a desk for most of the day — in other words, classic white collar roles. Even when working in operational settings like the restaurant industry, outside of touring sites and occasionally doing “work-withs,” most of my work has been office jobs.

My guess is that most LinkedIn members work in similar office and/or non-manual labor environments. Nevertheless, there is a lot of work done in this world that never sees the inside of a conference room, nor has the worker sitting in a cubicle — it’s manual work that has historically been labeled “blue collar.”

A Glimpse Inside Another Kind of Work
Recently, I’ve experienced a small slice of blue collar work in the construction industry. Before embarking on my research sabbatical I worked in a business that supplied construction materials to the building trades. And most recently, I’ve spent several months renovating my home.

This renovation was done in what I’ll call “semi-DIY” mode. I did some of the work myself (with the able assistance of my son), and I also served as an unwitting general contractor for the rest of the work.

The combination of my job in the construction supply industry coupled with this renovation experience has given me a brief glimpse into a very different work environment — a place where the work is more about physical labor; a place where the only time you sit down is for lunch.

I’ve considered this blue collar work through the prism of our research on well-being in the workplace and discovered several insights. But first, a few observations about the work itself:

• Construction work is still dominated by men. The construction supply company I worked for was ~90% male, as were most of our customers and their organizations. And with the exception of one female painter, none of the workers on my renovation project were women — plumbers, electricians, framers, dry wall, carpet, concrete, flooring, carpenters, inspectors, etc — all men.
• Most of the crews who did my renovation worked as family units — typically fathers and sons, but sometimes grandfathers and extended family like uncles and nephews were involved.
• It therefore follows that many construction companies are family owned and operated. Even larger companies in the building trades often started as family businesses, although some have been sold to corporations over the years.
• Many of the renovation crews knew each other — the plumbers knew and had worked with the electricians, the electricians knew the painters, etc.
• I consider myself physically fit, but no amount of athletic training can prepare one for days-on-end of construction work. There is a singular type of exhaustion that’s associated with week-after-week of manual labor. I’ve never needed a weekly sabbath day like I do now! 
• Construction work is not only physically taxing, it’s often dirty, dusty, hot (or cold) and grimy. Showers come at the end of the day, not the beginning.
• Construction seems always to take more time, effort and/or money than expected. There is a constant stream of unexpected issues or roadblocks that must be overcome in order to complete a job. This is especially true for rookies like me, but even the experienced contractors often experienced unexpected issues and delays.
• And finally, there is a clear sign of progress (slow as it might be) at the end of each day. A bathroom gets new tile. A house gets a new roof. A wall that used to be yellow is now gray. A wall goes up or comes down. In the construction business it’s clear when something has and has not been accomplished.

Well-Being@Work: Blue Collar Style
The Cons: There are clear drawbacks to working in jobs like those described in this article — the physical toll on one’s body being among the most obvious. And the dust and grim is a constant issue. The last few months I’ve ingested stuff in my eyes and nose that likely isn’t healthy. And there are always cuts, bruises and other injuries to contend with.

There aren’t many folks getting rich working construction. I remember my barber once telling me that barbers are never wealthy, but they always have at least $20 in their pocket. The same is likely true for a good plumber or electrician — they work hard for their money, but somebody is always in need of a plumber.

The issue of gender inequality in the construction industry speaks for itself. Solving this issue strikes me as a huge challenge that may take a long time to solve.

The Pros: But in spite of the challenges, there are positive well-being factors in this industry. Strong relationships at the workplace strike me as one of the more powerful factors. In addition to working with family, special bounds form among people who do tough labor together. Often, this type of work simply cannot be done without a partner or a crew working as a team — manual work forces teamwork like none other.

Clear feedback is another positive aspect of well-being associated with the building trades. Plumbers, framers, painters and other such trades don’t need someone to tell them when the job is done; the dashboard is right in front of them after a day’s work is done.

The constant challenges that construction work presents is a dual-edge sword. On the one hand, the incessant issues are a pain in the butt. However, getting through them requires creativity, grit and determination. So when the problem finally does get solved, it feels darn good — and again, you can literally see the success.

Finally, the skills that seasoned contractors acquire over the years are a source of accomplishment in their own right. Veteran construction workers have skills and knowledge that are evident and admirable.

Implications for the Office Crowd
For those of us who labor in office settings, there’s much to learn from blue collar workers about well-being at work. Here are a few of the lessons:

• Find physical signs of progress: Many white collar workers end each day with few visible signs of progress. We can’t step back from our desk and see the new wall that was built that day, but perhaps there are other physical cues like the smile on the face of a satisfied customer.
• Skill is an accomplishment: In the white collar world we like to gain new skills but we don’t see it as a badge of honor like many blue collar workers. We therefore need to pause and recognize that getting better at what we do is an accomplishment in its own right.
• Work hard: Working until you’re hang-dog tired isn’t all bad, in fact it often feels very satisfying at day's end. At minimum, banging a hammer for 10 straight hours makes the beer taste better and the sleep more precious.
• The power of relationships: Many of us won’t have the chance to work with a parent or child each day, but we can find co-workers who are not only helpful teammates, but are also good friends. Corporate policies be damned — it’s OK to have meaningful relationships at work.

All sorts of workers can find well-being in their jobs. It may come in different forms depending on what the work is, but it’s there regardless — even if it comes with some cuts and bruises.

For more information about our research, please visit wellbeing.nd.edu.  For more articles and insights got to foundationatwork.com.