This study investigates burnout among migrant hotel workers, focusing on how organisational practices, workplace experiences, and structural conditions intersect to generate chronic emotional and physical strain. Drawing on 17 in-depth interviews, the research integrates structural vulnerability, emotional labour, and person–environment fit theories as sensitising lenses. The findings reveal that burnout among migrant hotel workers is not only an individual stress response, but also a socially and organisationally embedded experience shaped by employment insecurity, financial pressure, cultural expectations, emotional service demands, and limited organisational support. By reframing burnout as a multi-layered, context-specific phenomenon rather than an individual psychological deficit, the study contributes to theoretical understanding of burnout in migrant-dependent service industries. It also offers practical implications, calling for culturally responsive organisational practices, clearer reporting pathways, safer work design, and more consistent managerial support to meet duty of care obligations and reduce burnout risks faced by migrant workers in hospitality.
AhmadSNESMohamad SaberJSalimA, et al. (2024) Examining the impact of job demand resource theory variables on burnout among hotel employees in Kuala Lumpur. Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts16(1): 489–513.
2.
AhmadNSamadSAhmadA, et al. (2026) Breaking new ground in hotel employee health and tourism in pursuit of sustainable development goals: a case study. International Journal of Hospitality Management133: 104493. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2025.104493
3.
AlbertiG (2014) Mobility strategies, ‘mobility differentials’ and ‘transnational exit’: the experiences of precarious migrants in London’s hospitality jobs. Work, Employment & Society28(6): 865–881. https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017014528403
4.
AlbertiGIannuzziFE (2020) Embodied intersectionality and the intersectional management of hotel labour: the everyday experiences of social differentiation in customer‐oriented work. Gender, Work and Organization27(6): 1165–1180. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12454
5.
Australian Bureau of Statistics (2022) Census of Population and Housing, 2021 – Employment, Industry and Occupation Data. Retrieved from. https://explore.data.abs.gov.au/
6.
BakkerABDemeroutiESanz-VergelA (2023) Job demands–resources theory: ten years later. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior10(1): 25–53. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-120920-053933
7.
BauderH (2006) Labor Movement: How Migration Regulates Labor Markets. Oxford University Press.
8.
BaumT (2012) Migrant workers in the international hotel industry. In: D’CruzA (ed) The Routledge Handbook of Hospitality Management. Routledge, pp. 215–227.
9.
BottGTourishD (2016) The critical incident technique reappraised: using critical incidents to illuminate organizational practices and build theory. Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal11(4): 276–300. https://doi.org/10.1108/qrom-01-2016-1351
10.
CheungCLamRLugosiP (2021) The impacts of cultural and emotional intelligence on hotel guest satisfaction: Asian and non-Asian perceptions of staff capabilities. Journal of China Tourism Research17(4): 521–540. https://doi.org/10.1080/19388160.2020.1771500
11.
ChoiHMKimWGMcGinleyS (2017) The extension of the theory of person–organization fit toward hospitality migrant worker. International Journal of Hospitality Management62: 66–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2016.12.003
12.
ChoiHMMohammadAAKimWG (2019) Understanding hotel frontline employees’ emotional intelligence, emotional labor, job stress, coping strategies and burnout. International Journal of Hospitality Management82: 199–208. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2019.05.002
13.
ChoiKFangMKhatterA (2022) What motivates employees to work in the hotel industry?: quarantine hotel employees’ perspectives. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management53: 96–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2022.09.004
14.
ClibbornS (2021) Multiple frames of reference: why international student workers in Australia tolerate underpayment. Economic and Industrial Democracy42(2): 336–354. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143831x18765247
EdwardsJRCaplanRDHarrisonRV (1998) Person–environment fit theory. In: CooperCL (ed) Theories of Organizational Stress. Oxford University Press, pp. 28–67.
17.
EfthymiouLOrphanidouYPanayiotouG (2020) Delineating the changing frontstage and backstage segregation in high-end and luxury hotels. Hospitality & Society10(3): 287–312. https://doi.org/10.1386/hosp_00025_1
18.
EggerthDEFlynnMA (2012) Applying the theory of work adjustment to Latino immigrant workers: an exploratory study. Journal of Career Development39(1): 76–98. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894845311417129
19.
GrobelnaA (2021) Emotional exhaustion and its consequences for hotel service quality: the critical role of workload and supervisor support. Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management30(4): 395–418. https://doi.org/10.1080/19368623.2021.1841704
20.
GuestGBunceAJohnsonL (2006) How many interviews are enough? An experiment with data saturation and variability. Field Methods18(1): 59–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822x05279903
21.
Hack-PolayDDal MasFMahmoudAB, et al. (2022) Barriers to the effective exploitation of migrants’ social and cultural capital in hospitality and tourism: a dual labour market perspective. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management50: 168–177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2022.01.012
22.
HochschildAR (1983) The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling. University of California Press.
23.
HsuDKBurmeister-LampKSimmonsSA, et al. (2019) “I know I can, but I don’t fit”: perceived fit, self-efficacy, and entrepreneurial intention. Journal of Business Venturing34(2): 311–326. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.08.004
JantaHLadkinABrownL, et al. (2011) Employment experiences of Polish migrant workers in the UK hospitality sector. Tourism Management32(5): 1006–1019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2010.08.013
26.
JonesJManoharanAJiangZ, et al. (2024) A framework of facilitators and barriers to career adaptability: migrant hotel workers during COVID-19. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research48(3): 483–500. https://doi.org/10.1177/10963480221118820
KooBYuJChuaBL, et al. (2020) Relationships among emotional and material rewards, job satisfaction, burnout, affective commitment, job performance, and turnover intention in the hotel industry. Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality & Tourism21(4): 371–401. https://doi.org/10.1080/1528008x.2019.1663572
29.
LamRCheungC (2024) Synthesizing cultural intelligence, emotional labor, and job satisfaction in the concept of a social cognitive model. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management60: 280–290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2024.08.001
30.
LamRCheungCLugosiP (2022) The impacts of cultural intelligence and emotional labor on the job satisfaction of luxury hotel employees. International Journal of Hospitality Management100: 103084. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2021.103084
31.
LazarusRSFolkmanS (1984) Stress, Appraisal, and Coping. Springer.
32.
MansourSTremblayDG (2018) Work–family conflict, job stress, burnout and intention to leave in the hotel industry in Quebec. International Journal of Human Resource Management29(16): 2399–2430.
MaslachCSchaufeliWBLeiterMP (2001) Job burnout. Annual Review of Psychology52(1): 397–422.
35.
McCraeRRCostaPT (1987) Validation of the five-factor model of personality across instruments and observers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology52(1): 81–90. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-3514.52.1.81
36.
MinHKimHJAgrusaJ (2023) Serving diverse customers: the impact of cultural intelligence on employee burnout, engagement, and job satisfaction. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research47(3): 503–527. https://doi.org/10.1177/10963480211016031
37.
MooneySRobinsonRSolnetD, et al. (2022) Rethinking tourism’s definition, scope and future of sustainable work and employment: editorial for the journal of sustainable tourism special issue on “locating workforce at the heart of sustainable tourism discourse.”. Journal of Sustainable Tourism30(12): 2707–2725. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2022.2078338
38.
NaeemMOzuemWHowellK, et al. (2023) A step-by-step process of thematic analysis to develop a conceptual model in qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods22: 16094069231205789. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069231205789
39.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (2022) International Migration Outlook 2022. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/1999124x
40.
OrnekOKWaibelJWullingerP, et al. (2022) Precarious employment and migrant workers’ mental health: a systematic review of quantitative and qualitative studies. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health48(5): 327–350. https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4019
41.
ParkIJHaiS (2024) Person–organization fit, person–job fit and organizational commitment among hotel employees: the roles of positive affect and calling. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management36(3): 789–811. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijchm-07-2022-0827
42.
QuesadaJHartLKBourgoisP (2011) Structural vulnerability and health: Latino migrant laborers in the United States. Medical Anthropology30(4): 339–362. https://doi.org/10.1080/01459740.2011.576725
43.
RathiNLeeK (2016) Emotional exhaustion and work attitudes: moderating effect of personality. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism15(3): 231–251. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332845.2016.1147935
44.
SaitoHBrozovićDBaumT (2025) Well-being of hospitality employees: a systematic literature review. International Journal of Hospitality Management124: 103955. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2024.103955
45.
SalamaWAbdouAHMohamedSAK, et al. (2022) Impact of work stress and job burnout on turnover intentions among hotel employees. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health19(15): 9724. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19159724
46.
ShenYHuY (2022) Emotional labour in a translocal context: rural migrant workers in China’s service sector. Social & Cultural Geography23(9): 1263–1281. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2020.1769168
47.
SönmezSApostolopoulosYLemkeMK, et al. (2020) Understanding the effects of COVID-19 on the health and safety of immigrant hospitality workers in the United States. Tourism Management Perspectives35: 100717. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmp.2020.100717
48.
ThamJ-CFudgeJ (2019) Unsavoury employer practices: understanding temporary migrant work in the Australian food services sector. International Journal of Comparative Labour Law and Industrial Relations35(1): 31–56. https://doi.org/10.54648/ijcl2019002
ZhuDWangPQKimS, et al. (2025) Crafting creativity and its impact on the trajectory of career withdrawal intentions of hospitality employees: a latent growth modeling approach. Tourism Management1982: 110, Article 105189.
