Hindrance Job Demands as Factors Undermining Employee Resilience

Given a turbulent work environment, employee resilience, defined as the capacity to bounce back, adapt, and even flourish at work in the face of challenging situations, has been receiving increasing attention. Previous studies have demonstrated the personal and organizational benefits of employee resilience and have underscored the need for further research on how to foster it. Nonetheless, in the organizational context, certain job demands may hinder its development. Drawing on the Job Demands–Resources theory and the challenge–hindrance framework, the paper aims to reveal the hindrance job demands that undermine employee resilience. For this, qualitative data were collected from 21 employees in Lithuania. The results revealed that social (toxic relationships with managers, difficulties in managing team dynamics, interpersonal conflicts with colleagues), organizational (role-related demands, generational clashes, workload, and scheduling), and emotional (dealing with clients) demands play an important role in undermining resilience. Moreover, ethical demands (dishonesty when dealing with clients and idea stealing) were also indicated. The results draw attention to the need to conduct training programs, including leadership training, to foster a supportive organizational culture and to rethink job design while aiming for organizational sustainability and employee well-being.