Issue #120 (Overwork Killed 745,000+ in a Year) 05/31/21
The first link in the "Articles & Resources" section below is worth a read and could save your life. It's an NPR article on a World Health Organization (WHO) study on overwork, stress, and burnout and the subsequent effects on health.
Here are some quotes from the article (linked below):
"The global study, which the WHO calls the first of its kind, found that in 2016, 488 million people were exposed to the risks of working long hours."
"Overwork has been on the rise for years due to phenomena such as the gig economy and telework — and they say the pandemic will likely accelerate those trends."
"The study found the highest health burdens from overwork in men and in workers who are middle-age or older. Regionally, people in Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific region had the most exposure to the risk. People in Europe had the lowest exposure."
Finally, the authors of the study provide some suggestions for a solution to the problem:
"The authors also say employers should be more flexible in scheduling, and to agree with their employees on a maximum number of working hours. In another step, the study suggests workers arrange to share hours so no one is working 55 or more hours in a week."
I know plenty of people who don't want to work full-time, so that last suggestion is a good one.
Now on to this week's hand-picked productivity links!
