Why job insecurity causes a wide range of health problems
Feeling uncertain about the future of your job can have a serious impact on your health, both mental and physical, according to a new report by a UCL economist.
Studying the link between employee stability and well-being among people in the UK, Switzerland, Canada and Australia, professor Francis Green found a clear trend – moving from a secure to an insecure job resulted in a substantial increase in “mental distress”.
“Job insecurity has become an increasing problem since the great recession and as labour markets have become more flexible,” the report says. It is due to be published tomorrow in the journal IZA World of Labor.
Read more: Anxiety could stop you getting the job you want
In fact, in some cases it wasn't even necessary to move from a more secure job to a less secure one to feel the effect – in the case of Australian men, having an insecure job was more likely to be associated with poor health than having no job at all.
As a result, Green says the health of workers is not just a matter for employers and employees, but also for public policy. In particular, he calls for the introduction of new re-employability and welfare policies and for more social support.
So, what are the health impacts of job insecurity? These are some of the main issues Green identified in his study…
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