Establishing the job demands and resources of support staff of a mining organization during the COVID-19 pandemic

This research analyses the job demands and resources encountered by support personnel at a mining company in Gauteng during the latter phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study included 12 support staff, chosen via convenience sampling (median age = 44), who engaged in semi-structured interviews (3 women, 9 men; 3 White, 9 African). The researchers utilised an inductive technique and applied Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis to discover four themes: job pressures encountered, organisational job resources, organisational assistance, and perceived support. The findings indicate that elevated job resources may enhance work efficiency and effectiveness in individuals managing job demands. The study also revealed that perceived organisational support affects job pressure and emotional fatigue in employees. The findings highlight the imperative for employees to proactively pursue job resources and assistance to manage job demands, emphasising the significance of deliberate resource allocation in high-stress industries to bolster resilience and equip both employees and organisations for future crises. The paper fills a gap in the literature by providing a comprehensive narrative analysis of job demands and resources during the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualitative interviews with support personnel enhance our understanding, supplementing prior quantitative studies that have predominated the research field. Future research should examine the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on employee well-being in relation to job demands and resources, and evaluate the function of diverse job resources in aiding employees to navigate post-pandemic issues.