Working long hours kills hundreds of thousands

The World Health Organization (WHO) and International Labour Organization have issued a stark warning about the danger of overworking. They said working long hours is causing the premature death of hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. The two organizations analysed the link between loss of life and working long hours. Their findings were sobering. Around three-quarters of a million workers die early after suffering strokes and heart attacks as a result of working over 55 hours a week. Most of these deaths were in people aged 60 to 70 who had worked at least 55 hours between the ages of 45 and 74. The researchers discovered that men accounted for 72 per cent of the deaths.

The WHO study revealed that people who work at least 55 hours a week have a 42 per cent increased risk of stroke, and a 19 per cent increased chance of heart disease. Researchers analysed data from workforces in 154 countries. They looked at data collected from 1970 to 2018. The WHO Director-General said: "No job is worth the risk of stroke or heart disease. Governments, employers and workers need to work together to agree on limits to protect the health of workers." The WHO said over nine per cent of workers overwork. It warned that the situation is worsening, saying: "The pandemic is accelerating developments that could feed the trend towards increased working time."