High-pressure overtime ‘could cause heart problems’

Posted 11/05/2010

Employers could be faced with personal injurycompensation claims following research which suggests that excessive overtime could lead to heart problems.

A study published in the European Heart Journal found that those who regularly worked for longer than seven hours were up to 60 per cent more likely to develop conditions like angina and heart disease.

This was even the case when outside factors such as obesity and smoking were taken into account.

The authors of the report suggested that prolonged periods of stress and less time to unwind after work could be contributing to the poorer health of employees working after hours.

Cathy Ross, spokesperson for the British Heart Foundation, said: “This study raises further questions about how our working lives can influence our risk of heart disease.”

This follows a recent poll by Santander, which showed that while one in seven people are currently doing 11 hours of overtime per week, only two out of five are being paid for it.