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Occupational Stress Research

Street Vendors and Related Salespersons: how stressful is the job?

Ranked #316 of 317 Australian occupations for workplace mental health hazards, with a composite stress score of 26.6/100. The biggest exposure is precision and monotony.

Composite stress score

26.6/100

National average: 47.4

Rank (most stressful)

#316 of 317

Australian ANZSCO occupations

More stress-exposed than

0.3% of occupations

By composite stress score

Quick answer: Street Vendors and Related Salespersons are less stress-exposed than most Australian occupations — ranked #316 of 317 by workplace mental health hazard exposure, with a composite stress score of 26.6/100 against a national average of 47.4.

Street Vendors and Related Salespersons stress profile vs the national average

Each occupation is scored across six categories of workplace mental health hazard, built from 22 stress factors identified in SafeWork Australia's occupational hazards data. Higher scores mean greater exposure.

Emotional demands29.2 vs 37.9 avg
Responsibility burden29.2 vs 60 avg
Pace and demands32.2 vs 56 avg
Lack of control5.8 vs 24.5 avg
Precision and monotony37.5 vs 67.7 avg
Physical environment25.6 vs 38.2 avg

Scores range 0–100; higher = more stress-inducing. Source: SafeWork Australia Beta Occupational Hazards Dataset.

What drives the score for street vendors and related salespersons

The occupation scores below the national average for responsibility burden (29.2 vs 60), precision and monotony (37.5 vs 67.7) and pace and demands (32.2 vs 56), which moderates the overall ranking.

See how this compares across all 317 Australian occupations, ranked by stress score.

The biggest stress factors for street vendors and related salespersons

  1. 1Physical environment

    Physical Proximity

    66.8/100

    All-occupation average: 61.1

  2. 2Pace and demands

    Level of Competition

    55.2/100

    All-occupation average: 52.4

  3. 3Pace and demands

    Time Pressure

    51/100

    All-occupation average: 71.6

  4. 4Precision and monotony

    Importance of Being Exact or Accurate

    49/100

    All-occupation average: 78.6

  5. 5Responsibility burden

    Coordinate or Lead Others

    48/100

    All-occupation average: 64.9

All 22 stress factors for street vendors and related salespersons

The complete scorecard: every stress factor measured for this occupation, grouped into the six categories, with the all-occupation average alongside.

Emotional demands

29.2 vs 37.9 avg
  • Deal With Physically Aggressive People6.2 vs 14
  • Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People42.8 vs 50.4
  • Frequency of Conflict Situations38.5 vs 49.3

Responsibility burden

29.2 vs 60 avg
  • Responsibility for Outcomes and Results30.2 vs 58.5
  • Responsible for Others' Health and Safety16.8 vs 57.3
  • Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results39.5 vs 70.4
  • Consequence of Error11.5 vs 49
  • Coordinate or Lead Others48 vs 64.9

Pace and demands

32.2 vs 56 avg
  • Time Pressure51 vs 71.6
  • Duration of Typical Work Week6 vs 62.1
  • Pace Determined by Speed of Equipment1 vs 23.1
  • Frequency of Decision Making48 vs 70.7
  • Level of Competition55.2 vs 52.4

Lack of control

5.8 vs 24.5 avg
  • Lack of Autonomy to Make Decisions5.2 vs 23.6
  • Amount of Highly Structured Work6.2 vs 25.3

Precision and monotony

37.5 vs 67.7 avg
  • Importance of Repeating Same Tasks26 vs 56.9
  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate49 vs 78.6

Physical environment

25.6 vs 38.2 avg
  • Sounds and Noise Levels Are Distracting or Uncomfortable20.8 vs 52.3
  • Extremely Bright or Inadequate Lighting15.5 vs 24.9
  • Very Hot or Cold Temperatures17.8 vs 32.4
  • Exposed to Disease or Infections7.2 vs 20.2
  • Physical Proximity66.8 vs 61.1

Methodology

Clearhead scored 317 occupations in the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) using SafeWork Australia's Beta Occupational Hazards Dataset. We kept only the 22 hazard variables relating to mental health — such as conflict exposure, decision-making pressure, and time pressure — and deliberately excluded physical safety risks like working at height.

The 22 variables are grouped into six categories: emotional demands, responsibility burden, pace and demands, lack of control, precision and monotony, and physical environment. An occupation's composite score is the equally weighted average of its six category scores. All scores run 0–100, where higher means more stress-inducing.

Two control-related variables are reported by SafeWork with inverted polarity (“freedom to make decisions” and “structured versus unstructured work”). We reverse these and present them as lack of autonomy to make decisions and amount of highly structured work, so that a higher score consistently indicates greater stress exposure.

Hazard exposure describes the average conditions of an occupation, not any individual's experience — everyone has a different tolerance for these challenges, and conditions vary between workplaces.

Frequently asked questions

Street Vendors and Related Salespersons: how stressful is the job?

Street Vendors and Related Salespersons rank #316 out of 317 Australian occupations for workplace mental health hazards, with a composite stress score of 26.6/100 against a national average of 47.4. That makes the occupation more stress-exposed than 0.3% of Australian jobs.

What are the biggest mental health stress factors for street vendors and related salespersons?

The highest-scoring hazards are physical proximity (66.8/100), level of competition (55.2/100) and time pressure (51/100).

Which stress factors are lower for street vendors and related salespersons?

Street Vendors and Related Salespersons score below the national average for emotional demands (29.2 vs 37.9 average) and responsibility burden (29.2 vs 60 average) and pace and demands (32.2 vs 56 average) and lack of control (5.8 vs 24.5 average) and precision and monotony (37.5 vs 67.7 average) and physical environment (25.6 vs 38.2 average), which partially offsets the higher-scoring hazards.

Where does this data come from?

Scores are derived from SafeWork Australia's Beta Occupational Hazards Dataset. Clearhead filtered the dataset to the 22 mental-health-related hazard variables — excluding physical safety risks — and scored 317 ANZSCO occupations across six categories: emotional demands, responsibility burden, pace and demands, lack of control, precision and monotony, and physical environment.

Beyond the average

This is the average hazard exposure for street vendors and related salespersons. Your workforce isn't average.

Clearhead's Psychosocial Risk Pulse measures the actual psychosocial risk in your organisation, quarterly — across 18 ISO 45003-aligned work factors.

Clearhead Psychosocial Risk Pulse Tool

Know your industry's risks. Then measure your own.

Population-level data shows where the hazards concentrate — but psychosocial risk legislation requires you to identify and manage the risks in your own workforce. Clearhead's Psychosocial Risk Pulse gives you that evidence, quarterly.

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