The Health Risks of Overwork
Posted March 16th, 2015
These days, many people are putting in long hours at work. One reason for this is that employers are demanding more of their employees. Companies laid off workers during the recession and asked the remaining workers to take on the work of those who left. With the economy in a precarious state, workers complied out of fear of losing their jobs.
Many people also put in long hours because of their ambition to get ahead, especially in competitive fields. Time spent working is an easy way to measure their commitment to their work, much easier to see than creativity, innovation or productivity.
But research has established a clear link between overwork and health problems, not just physically but mentally as well. Putting in long hours without taking time off over a period of years can lead to increased risk of cardiovascular disease, problems sleeping, diabetes, fatigue, and depression. Overwork also raises the risk of getting dementia later in life.
For many companies, working overtime is used as a measure of company loyalty. But this attitude rests on the mistaken assumption that working long hours will increase productivity, when in reality the reverse is true. Companies assume that if you are working longer you must be producing more, but they don’t take into account that the quality of work often suffers as a result.
But companies lose sight of this fact, and they focus only on the hours, rather than what is accomplished. In such an atmosphere, employees are valued more for the time they put in, rather than their productivity. Their willingness to work long hours is seen as a sign of loyalty.
Other research has shown that working longer hours can lead to depression. The study found that the rate of depression for those who worked at least 11 hours a day was almost two and a half times greater than those who worked eight to nine hours a day.
If you are overworked, you need to examine your own productivity and see if the extra hours are really worth the effort. Talk with your supervisor about your schedule, and plan to take some vacation time.
If you’re a resident of the San Francisco Bay Area and are looking for work in the IT, engineering, or medical technology sectors, send your resume to Bayside Solutions, one of the premier technology staffing firms in the Bay area. We look forward to hearing from you.
