A Market Spell

Researchers at the University of Warwick recently probed into the effects of receiving a promotion on a worker’s physical and psychological fitness. They questioned 1,000 workers who had been promoted to managerial or supervisory posts in the past five years on their health, their mental welfare and frequency of health service usage.

They found that the workers had a disturbing tendency to reduce their visits to doctors after climbing a step in the career ladder. This was not due to a sudden improvement in their health. In fact, the researchers, specialists in economics and psychology, believe that the promotion causes an increase in work-related tensions, which in turn increases the workers’ stress level. The newly promoted workers tend to neglect their health in favour of the increased responsibilities.

The data collected showed that there is generally a drop of 20% in visits to doctors after a promotion. Moreover, on an average, after the elevation in their workplace, the workers’ mental fitness deteriorates by as much as one-tenth. The higher stress level as well as anxiety due to an increased workload gives people lesser time to visit the doctor. Chris Boyce, one of the researchers, confirmed that the visits to doctors had clearly taken a back seat for the participants in the study, which was a worrying sign.

The researchers believe that this is concrete evidence to support their theory that after attaining a higher post, an individual’s mental health deteriorates, affecting them not only in the short-term but also in the long run.

To avoid the repercussions of a visit from HSE officials companies should bring themselves and their employees fully up-to-date with the latest H&S regulations. The iosh course is a highly reputable accredited course run by Workplace Law Training and is a good first step to improving your companies H&S culture.