Men who work long hours are less likely to suffer depression

Women who put in long hours at work are prone to depression – but the same is not true of men, researchers have found.

A study found women who worked more than 55 hours per week were more likely to suffer depression than women working a standard 35- to 40-hour week.

Men were no more likely to suffer depression if they worked long hours overall – but were still susceptible to problems if they worked weekends.

The researchers suspect the gender difference is down to the fact that even when women have left work, they are left with the burden of chores around the home.

Lead author Gill Weston, of University College London, said the findings called for greater support for women working long hours in the workplace.

‘Although we cannot establish the exact causes, we do know many women face the additional burden of doing a larger share of domestic labour than men, leading to extensive total work hours, added time pressures and overwhelming responsibilities,’ she said.

‘We hope our findings will encourage employers and policy-makers to think about how to reduce the burdens and increase support for women who work long or irregular hours – without restricting their ability to work when they wish to.

‘More sympathetic working practices could bring benefits both for workers and for employers – of both sexes.’

The researchers also found that married women with children at home tended to be less likely to work long hours than single women – but married fathers were more likely to put in overtime at the office than men with no family.

-Dailymail