Workplace stress apparently can be linked to heart disease. A leading management expert explores this and other astonishing findings that connect workplace disengagement to health problems.
The high cost of health insurance has prodded many American businesses to use creative strategies to encourage healthier habits among employees, from on-campus gyms and weight-loss programs to healthy food in the cafeteria; some businesses even employ on-site nurses.
But wellness programs can't be mandated, nor can good health. There's only so much an organization can do to promote healthy habits among employees. Furthermore, it's an uphill battle: As workers age, they become more expensive to insure and treat. But recent research suggests that business may be overlooking an important cause of ill health and high insurance costs: workplace stress.
QUOTE: People with high stress and high levels of cortisol are more likely to miss days of work and will probably be less productive each day.
We all know that stress can be hard on one's health, but recent research suggests it can actually be deadly. James K. Harter, Ph.D., Gallup's chief scientist of workplace management and well-being, has been studying well-being and the workplace for the past 20 years, and some of the recent research on the workplace and health has astonished even him. One finding that has grabbed his attention: Workplace stress apparently can be linked to heart disease -- the number-one cause of death in American men and women over 35 -- in a large proportion of workers. Worse yet, heart disease in these employees is separate from other health factors, such as weight, diet, smoking, or family history.
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