Ergophobia a hospital in New Jersey as early as in the 1860s. Ergophobia is a corollary of Occupational Burnout, which is thought to be the result of long-term unresolvable job stress. The term “burnout” did not come to be used with regularity until the 1970s in the United States. Freudenberger, for example, used it to describe the phenomenon of physical and emotional exhaustion with associated negative attitudes arising from intense interactions when working with people. Later studies on ergophobia and occupational burnout build upon the existing conception of Freudenberger’s research and found the phenomenon was quite common in a variety of
What Work Is Fame" and "Growth" are direct accounts of two of Levine's jobs as a young man. "Fear and Fame" is based on a job Levine had cleaning out and refilling acid vats in his mid twenties. "Growth" is about the job Levine held at a soap factory at the age of fourteen. Many of Levine's poems are based on his experience growing up in Detroit. The titular poem, "What Work Is", is based on Levine's experience of waiting in a Detroit employment line. "The Right Cross" is related to a boxing teacher who taught Levine to defend himself while growing up