The adage is that “work is health”. However, this is not what the results of a survey launched by the Pierre Deniker Foundation, at least in terms of mental health. Assessing the mental state of working French people, the study based on 3,200 questionnaires reveals that 22% of them present with “distress leading to a mental disorder”. A number that even rises to 26% for women, against 19% for men.
Aspects of workplace harassment
“We wanted to measure the risk of depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, addictions… among working people”declares the director of the study, psychiatrist and researcher in epidemiology at Paris Descartes Astrid Chevance, interviewed by The Parisian. And the risk factors are multiple. For 22% of employees, the work they do does not give them a good opinion of themselves. 27% believe that they cannot rely on their colleagues. 44% report poor communication and flow of information within their team.
The difference between women and men is already known, explains Astrid Chevance, always on a daily basis: “psychiatric disorders and depression affect women twice as much as men (lower resistance to stress, financial dependence, hormones, etc.)”.
Nevertheless, women are more sensitive to the valuation of their work. 20% also say “to have at work one (or more) people who take pleasure in making them suffer”, write the authors of the study. In men, psychic distress is linked to a lack of solidarity. 38% of men also say they often come into contact with rude or aggressive people. “All of these are two sides of harassment at work”concludes the psychiatrist.
A major public health issue
Caregivers are particularly concerned by the risk of mental disorders, since 28% present with distress. This is due in particular to the weight of harassment at work, as well as a lack of support from their superiors. People who work more than 50 hours per week, those who receive an annual income of less than 15,000 euros and those who spend more than 1h30 a day in transport are also populations at risk. Finally, 15% of working people feel that they are unable to combine their professional and personal life.
“The mental health of working people is now a major public health issue”, warns the Pierre Deniker Foundation. Awareness that should lead to the development of means of prevention and actions in companies.
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