What is "ergophobia"

"fear of work," 1905, coined by British medical man Dr. William Dunnett Spanton, from comb. form of Greek ergos "work" (see organ) + -phobia "fear."\n\nMr. W.D. Spanton (Leeds) considered that the most prominent causes of physical degeneration were
--efforts to rear premature and diseased infants, absurd educational high pressure, cigarette smoking in the younger generation, and late hours at night; in fact, the love of pleasure and ergophobia in all classes of society. He considered that there was too much cheap philanthropy, that life was made too easy for the young poor, and that by modern educational methods proper parental discipline was rendered almost impossible.

[report on the 73rd annual meeting of the British Medical Association, "Nature," Aug. 3, 1905]

n. An irrational fear of work.

Ergophobia or ergasiophobia is an abnormal and persistent fear of work ( manual labor, non-manual labour, etc.) or finding employment. Ergophobia may also be a subset of either social phobia or performance anxiety. Sufferers of ergophobia experience undue anxiety about the workplace environment even though they realize their fear is irrational. Their fear may actually be a combination of fears, such as fear of failing at assigned tasks, speaking before groups at work (both of which are types of performance anxiety), socializing with co-workers (a type of social phobia), and other fears of emotional, psychological and/or physiological injuries.

The term ergophobia comes from the Greek "ergon" (work) and "phobos" (fear).