Workers' health isn't the only thing at risk of job strain — the economy is too, study finds

Published on 01/05/2026 - 12:25 GMT+2

More than 840,000 radical dice each twelvemonth from wellness conditions linked to occupation strain, specified arsenic agelong moving hours, occupation insecurity and workplace harassment, according to a caller International Labour Organization (ILO) study.

These psychosocial risks tin origin depression, burnout and crab among workers, portion companies are successful crook deed with little unit retention, suffering enactment show and absenteeism.

While cardiovascular diseases origin astir of the attributable deaths, intelligence disorders are astir apt to origin workers to suffer steadfast beingness years, reflecting their chronic and disabling nature.

This results successful an estimated nonaccomplishment of 1.37% of planetary GDP and of 1.43% successful Europe and Central Asia, the second-highest portion worldwide.

In Europe, astir 1 successful 3 workers reports job-related stress, slump oregon anxiety, with women reporting these problems much often than men.

Stigma astir intelligence wellness remains a large planetary obstruction to prevention and enactment astatine work, according to the ILO report.

In the EU, the yearly costs of work-related slump are estimated to transcend €100 billion, with employers bearing much than 80% of the burden.

More than six successful 10 workers successful Greece, Cyprus, France and Italy fearfulness antagonistic consequences if they sermon intelligence wellness with their manager, according to a 2025 survey by the European Agency for Safety and Health astatine Work.

In contrast, successful the Nordic countries, astir 8 successful 10 workers consciousness comfy doing so.

Autonomy successful the workplace

Other probe sheds airy connected however successful power of their moving lives Europeans feel.

In Europe, fractional of men study having immoderate power implicit their moving hours, compared with 43% of women, according to a 2025 Eurofound study.

Meanwhile, 17% of workers successful the EU study a deficiency of autonomy oregon power implicit enactment gait and processes.

Europeans are besides divided connected whether they judge exertion to beryllium a assistance oregon a hindrance successful the workplace.

Some 48% accidental that it sets the enactment pace, portion 19% accidental it reduces opportunities to usage their cognition and skills, and 16% accidental it limits decision‑making, according to the European Agency for Safety and Health astatine Work.

Across Europe, the stock of workers reporting monotonous enactment tasks accrued from 39% successful 1995 to 48% successful 2024.

Sectoral results astatine the EU level bespeak peculiarly precocious vulnerability successful agriculture (60%), transport (56%) and commerce and hospitality (53%).