ORGANIZATIONS AS SECULAR HUMANISTS? WELL-BEING FROM THE STANDPOINT OF ABSURDISM

An analysis of organizations as promoters of well-being is conducted using the analogy of secular humanism, wherein organizations perceive themselves as champions of well-being in our societies, as they strive for a constant improvement in the working conditions of their employees. However, employing Albert Camus’ concept of absurdism, I scrutinized how the well-being offered by modern organizations falls into the category of the absurd. This implies a conflict between workers’ inclination to belief that organizations are well-being drivers and the contradictory outcomes reported daily in the news. To comprehend this contradiction, I explore the traditional three options to deal with the absurd: the religious option (i.e., the cult of well-being), the suicidal option (i.e., abandon the labor market), and the acceptance of the absurd (i.e., dealing with the absurd from a different theoretical perspective of well-being). In the last option, I argue that eudaimonic well-being is an actionable approach to well-being that can help workers cope with the pressure of hedonic well-being promoted by organizations. Each of these options is analyzed using four main aspects of well-being: meaning, stress, talent, and performance. Finally, practical implications for human resources management departments are presented, advocating for the preference of workers choosing the acceptance of the absurd over of the other two options.