Working long hours, as in 55 or more hours per week, isn't just exhausting – it can potentially kill you, according to the World Health Organization and International Labour Organization in a new report. "In 2016, 398, 000 people died from stroke and 347,000 from heart disease as a result of having worked at least 55 hours a week," the report says. That's a total of 745,194 deaths in one year caused by over-working.
The majority of people who died were men, and "most of the deaths recorded were among people dying aged 60-79 years, who had worked for 55 hours or more per week between the ages of 45 and 74 years," according to the report.
From HuffPost:
The peer-reviewed study, which WHO says is the first global analysis of its kind, found that 488 million people around the world put in long work hours, defined as 55 hours or more per week.
WHO warns that long working hours are on the rise around the world, which puts even more people at risk of work-related disability and early death. The agency is also concerned about the likely impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, as millions of people have put in a grueling year-plus of even longer hours working from home, while others have been forced to do more with less in the face of sweeping layoffs.
"Teleworking has become the norm in many industries, often blurring the boundaries between home and work. In addition, many businesses have been forced to scale back or shut down operations to save money, and people who are still on the payroll end up working longer hours," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, in a press release. …
The new report did find some differences in who is at greatest risk for serious outcomes as a result of long work hours. The risk of death was highest in men, people living in the Western Pacific and South-East Asia regions, as well as middle-aged or older workers. But the findings also make it clear that putting in really long hours at work is potentially harmful to everyone, no matter their field or circumstances.
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