Topline
Working long hours is killing hundreds of thousands of people a year and could be getting worse due to the economic slowdown and increase in flexible working during the Covid-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization warned Monday, calling for employers and governments to cap working hours in order to safeguard employee health.
Working more than 55 hours a week can increase risk of stroke and heart disease, WHO said.
getty
Key Facts
745,000 people died from stroke and heart disease in 2016 as a result of working more than 55 hours a week, according to a first-of-its kind study by the WHO and International Labour Organization.
Men made up the overwhelming majority of these deaths, almost three quarters, with people living in South East Asia and the Western Pacific (a WHO region including Japan, China and Australia) also significantly affected.
In most cases, the deaths were recorded years or even decades after people had worked the long hours, the organizations wrote, with those working 55 or more hours a week being at an increased risk of dying from stroke, 35%, or ischemic heart disease, 17%, when compared to those working a 35-40 hour week.
Dr. Maria Neira, Director of the WHO’s Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, said the research clearly shows that long working hours are “a serious health hazard.”
The Covid-19 pandemic, rise of the gig economy and teleworking could all serve to increase the risks of working long hours, the organizations warned, blurring the boundaries between work and home and pressuring workers to perform for longer as companies save by cutting payrolls.
The WHO said hours should be capped for workers’ safety, as long working hours appear to be the most significant occupational disease burden, accounting for a third of work-related disease.
What To Watch For
The study, which covered the years 2000-2016, has not accounted for a great part of the gig economy’s rise and the changed working situation during the pandemic. The WHO and ILO said they expect these to worsen the numbers of people working long hours, pointing to uncertainty involved in the new working arrangements and an increase in working hours after previous recessions. Work during the pandemic may also increase working hours: Frank Pega, a WHO technical officer, said the organization has evidence showing “that when countries go into national lockdown, the number of hours worked increase by about 10%,” the BBC reported.
Big Number
55 hours or more. This is how many hours a week the WHO and ILO consider to be dangerous, according to this study. 9% of the global population are currently working such dangerously long hours, the WHO estimated, a 9% increase from 2000. The WHO said this figure is still increasing.
What We Don’t Know
Working long hours can have health impacts beyond those measured in this study (heart disease and stroke) and the interplay between health and environment is so complex that other factors could account for some of these findings. Mental health and stress, for example, can be profoundly affected by work.
Crucial Quote
WHO chief Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for employers and governments to work together and address long working hours, saying: “No job is worth the risk of stroke or heart disease.”