Researchers from Harvard Business School and Stanford University have revealed that those who work in demanding jobs are far more likely to be diagnosed with a physical or mental illness, while those who work long hours tend to die earlier than those who spend less time at work.
The researchers said “Extensive research focuses on the causes of workplace-induced stress. However, efforts to tackle the ever-increasing health costs and poor health outcomes have largely ignored the health effects of psychosocial workplace stressors such as high job demands, economic insecurity, and long work hours.
“Using meta-analysis, we summarize 228 studies assessing the effects of 10 workplace stressors on four health outcomes.
“We find that job insecurity increases the odds of reporting poor health by about 50 percent, high job demands raise the odds of having a physician-diagnosed illness by 35 per cent, and long work hours increase mortality by almost 20 per cent. Therefore, policies designed to reduce health costs and improve health outcomes should account for the health effects of the workplace environment.”