Kenji Hamada was 42 years old when he died of a heart attack in Tokyo, Japan. He worked 75 hours a week (15 hours/day Monday through Friday, or 9.3 hours/day seven days a week) and still had a 2-hour commute to work.
Before his death, he had worked 40 consecutive days without a single day off.
In the United States, it is estimated that 120,000 people die every year as a result of work and its consequences — including economic insecurity, work-family conflict, long working hours, excessive stress, and lack of control in the corporate environment.
Companies there are beginning to worry about rising employee healthcare costs. Per capita spending has increased 29 times over 40 years, outpacing economic growth.
In Brazil, 78 percent of people suffer from illness and psychological distress caused by both the lack and the excess of work.
In other words, while we are still recovering from an economic crisis that left millions unemployed, many others are falling ill precisely at their jobs.
The research was conducted by sociologist Ruy Braga, in partnership with a consultancy specializing in organizational culture, with more than 800 respondents, and showed that their health had deteriorated across virtually all occupational levels.
Anxiety, depression, insomnia, panic disorder, burnout, prescription drug use, alcohol, and substance abuse were among the consequences listed.
Brazil as an International Case Study
A study conducted by the International Stress Management Association (Isma) found that Brazilians are becoming increasingly ill in the workplace.
One in three Brazilians reported work-related stress, ranking second only to Japanese workers, among whom 70 percent report feeling stressed by their working hours.
Brazil had not ranked in the top 10 of this index for more than 10 years.
As in the United States, companies here are growing concerned about this issue and beginning to create alternatives to make the work environment more "pleasant."
Such as wellness programs, lunchtime yoga, meditation, bean bag chairs, and game rooms, among other employee "perks."
It is a way to reduce costs associated with employee absenteeism — including sick leave, medical treatment leave, reduced productivity, health insurance expenses, and workers' compensation claims filed by employees who became ill on the job.
Jeffrey Pfeffer, professor of organizational behavior at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and author of the book Dying for a Paycheck, argues that companies are completely missing the point:
Offering lunchtime yoga to stressed workers ignores the real reason workers are so stressed: management practices such as long working hours, unpredictable schedules, toxic bosses, and after-hours emails. It is not individual workers making poor health choices that is making them so sick.
In recent years, the profiles of both companies and employees have changed dramatically. Many professionals are no longer accepting grueling work routines, and burnout (exhaustion syndrome) is becoming increasingly common.
Companies with outdated leadership models focused on Management by Control are increasingly losing ground — and talent — to the market.
It therefore falls to leaders and their Human Resources departments to work together to address these issues within their organizations.
Based on research involving more than 10,000 managers and HR professionals, StartSe identified that this area is becoming the new hub of innovation within corporations.
With initiatives aimed at making employees' lives less stressful — such as guiding leaders and managers on new management models and sound corporate practices — these changes will be far easier to implement within the organization.
Source: Startse