Work and Depression

A recent study in the UK came out with some predictable results….

Relative to a standard 35–40 hours/week, working 55 hours/week or more related to more depressive symptoms among women (ß=0.75, 95% CI 0.12 to 1.39), but not for men (ß=0.24, 95% CI −0.10 to 0.58). Compared with not working weekends, working most or all weekends related to more depressive symptoms for both men (ß=0.34, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.61) and women (ß=0.50, 95% CI 0.20 to 0.79); however, working some weekends only related to more depressive symptoms for men (ß=0.33, 95% CI 0.11 to 0.55), not women (ß=0.17, 95% CI −0.09 to 0.42).

The differences between genders on the impact of work week hours probably connect to the fact that women tend to do the brunt of the housework in most two-parent families or are typically responsible for workday emergencies involving children.

One can argue that employers need to normalize work schedules in order to maintain a healthy workforce but we’ve been saying that for decades. Corporations typically respond with things like wellness cellphone apps or lip service to work-life balance in policy but not in practice. Asking employees to balance their lives while, at the same time, creating expectations that make it impossible only adds to the problem.

Whether the solution is political (incentives, regulation) or individual (workers rejecting the 55-60 hour work week en masse) something needs to be done. It’s not just about the individual health of the employee but also their children and other family members.

Link to Study