Work is bad for your health — official

Work is adversely affecting the health of a quarter of European workers, according to the fifth European Working Conditions Survey. In a sign of the times, the proportion of workers forced to make repetitive hand or arm movements continues to rise — up 7.4% to 63.5% over the last 10 years.

Also increasing is the number of workers obliged to adopt painful or tiring positions for at least a quarter of their working day (46%).

Exposure to chemical products is also increasing, according to the results, which are reported in full on the website of the European Trade Union Institute.

www.eurofound.europa.eu/ewco/surveys/ewcs2010/index.htm