Journal

People can work up to 39 hours per week in a healthy manner.

Satoshi

In Japan, the term “karoshi” (death by overwork) is recognized by many people.

It has long been an endemic social problem in Japan.

Now this term “karoshi” has spread all over the world.

Hello, this is Santoshi.

The item to avoid when finding a job in Japan is not to be “overworked”.

Death by overwork” will approach when you reach your physical and mental limits.

So what is the clear limit of hours you can work?

Research by the Australian National University has shown that 39 hours per week is the limit at which people can work healthily.

Overwork is a global problem, not just in Japan.

Recent scientific research has provided a body of evidence that reducing working hours is important.

Do you work more than 39 hours a week? Your job could be killing you | Life and style | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/jan/15/is-28-hours-ideal-working-week-for-healthy-life


If you think that technological developments will reduce the number of jobs, that is not necessarily the case.

In 2002, less than 10% of people checked their work e-mail after work hours.

Today, however, smartphones and tablets have risen to prominence.

It is estimated that 50% of people now check their work e-mail before going to bed.

In a study of people’s activity status and health, Columbia University tracked the activity status of more than 8,000 subjects over the age of 45.

People averaged 12.3 hours of weekday inactivity.

Employees who sat for more than 13 hours a day were almost twice as likely to die early than those who sat for 11.5 hours a day of inactivity.

Some researchers have concluded from multiple studies that sitting for long periods of time shortens a person’s life span as much as smoking.


Researchers at University College London also studied 85,000 workers, mostly middle-aged men and women, and found a link between overwork and cardiovascular disease.

They found that overworking increases the risk associated with arrhythmias, particularly atrial fibrillation.

In this study, “overworked” refers to people who work more than 55 hours per week.

These individuals had a 40% increased risk of atrial fibrillation over the next 10 years compared to those working 35 to 40 hours per week.


The “overwork” trend is occurring around the world, with as many as 15,000 workers at IG Metall, a German metalworkers’ union, striking for a 28-hour workweek to improve their work-life balance.

In February 2017, a research team from the Australian National University published a study showing that the limit for a healthy work week is 39 hours, and the workers who went on strike in Germany also explained their demands as “self-preservation, not laziness.

Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, a Silicon Valley consultant, entrepreneur, and visiting scholar at Stanford University, claims that modern workers can only be creative for up to four hours a day.

He added that after two years of adopting a six-hour workday in Sweden, workers reported that they were healthier.

Work productivity also increased by 85% throughout the organization.



However, most of these studies focus on the numerical aspect of “working hours” and do not discuss employment conditions.

A stressful work environment, even if it is only a few hours a day, can destroy a worker’s freedom and creativity.

According to a study by market research firm YouGov, one-third of all workers in the UK believe their work is pointless.

So without improvements in the working environment and employee morale along with working hours, the effects of reducing working hours could be less effective.

Work is very much about being healthy.

If you are feeling limited yourself, “Rest first!”

Never overwork yourself and live happily.

ABOUT ME
Satoshi
Satoshi
Hello, I’m Satoshi. I’ve been working as a staff member for an organization for over a decade. During that time, I’ve had various experiences, from launching new businesses to streamlining operations using information I’ve gathered from the internet and my own experiences. Of course, I’ve been successful with the help of colleagues and superiors, and I’m grateful to them. Nowadays, I find myself in a position where people from various backgrounds ask me for advice and share their knowledge. However, being constantly approached has made me realize that I need to protect my own time. So, I’ve decided to start a blog called ‘Satoshi Lab’ to share knowledge. I hope that by writing about my thoughts and experiences, people will enjoy reading and find it helpful in their own journeys.
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