Poor job quality leaves people exhausted and at risk of ill health

A new report from the Institute for Employment Studies warns that poor job quality is significantly affecting worker health, with 1.7 million people in Great Britain reporting work-related ill health in the last year. The research reveals that half of all workers report having to work more hours than contracted or expected – the highest rate in Europe. Rising work intensity and job strain have left around half of the UK workforce regularly exhausted. The impact of ill-health on spiralling economic inactivity is a focus of an anticipated government White Paper looking to tackle the ‘greatest employment challenge for a generation’ and support more people into good work.

The report, Exploring the interactions between job quality, industries and health, was produced by the IES for the Commission for Healthier Working Lives. The Commission was established to address the growing challenges of working-age ill health and help people with health conditions to thrive in the workforce. The work is supported by the Health Foundation.

The research highlights that people working in transport and storage, construction, commerce and hospitality – around a quarter of the workforce – reported poorer quality outcomes across a range of indicators. A rapid review of the evidence identified four key aspects of job quality with the strongest links to health. These were:

• Job security and precarity
• Excessive and/or irregular hours
• Demands and control at work
• Relationships and support

In addition to UK workers enduring the highest rate of excessive hours worked across Europe, the research also found that:

• Three fifths of the workforce report having to work to tight deadlines and two fifths at high speed, both of which are among the highest rates in Europe.
• Just one third of workers say they have control over how they work – the lowest rate in Europe.

The report recognises that, while work generally supports the health of most people, a significant minority face risks linked to their working conditions. These include insecure work (affecting one in eight workers), regularly working long hours (one in six), working night shifts (one in nine) or irregular hours (one in six). There are also around one in six workers who report experiencing bullying, harassment or discrimination in the past year.

These issues are compounded by poor job quality indicators often clustering together, with people already disadvantaged in the labour market facing the greatest risks. Certain occupations, such as teaching and nursing, both at the centre of government recruitment initiatives, are especially likely to see high levels of job strain and those working in health services and education faced the highest risks of burnout – affecting more than two fifths of these workforces. While many employers are actively improving working conditions and job quality, it is hoped that this research can help focus efforts on continual improvements in supporting good practice and good work.