Is obesity costing the Australian workforce?

The obesity epidemic began to appear in the 90’s and has since caused ever increasing costs to health services. A National Health Survey found that the number of Australians considered obese had reached nearly 2.5 million in 2004-05. Many studies have found that this health issue is having a huge cost impact on the Australian workforce, due not only to the poor health and limitations of obese individuals, but also to the social stigma and discriminations they face. Using the Body Mass Index (BMI) as an indicator for obesity, research is finding some distressing consequences.

Epidemiological studies found inverse relationships between socioeconomic status and BMI, primarily with education and occupation. Decreasing levels of education had a greater impact than declining occupational status. In addition, recent studies showed results that counter the relationship previously thought to exist between unemployment and obesity. No significant differences in the rates of overweight and obesity were found between the employed and unemployed. Investigation into the profession of an individual found that lower status occupations had higher BMIs and rates of obesity than managerial, administrative, clerical or professional positions.

Absenteeism is a significant issue in the workplace. Obesity was associated with an increase in lost work days. Obese employees were found to take more time off for illness, had lower levels of health, were less likely to be working and were less likely to work fulltime, compared to employees who were not obese. These individuals were also more likely to have physical limitations and disabilities due to their weight. It has been suggested that these work limitations may be preventing obese individuals from working either partially or entirely, and that poor health may change an individual’s perception of work versus leisure, giving higher value to leisure time.

Certain working conditions were found to affect body weight and physical health. In women, they were linked to work environments with decreasing job control and increasing work load. For men, it was found that high job demands, heavy physical work and low job control were the associated factors. These employment conditions are worsening the rate of obesity and, in turn, increasing obesity related costs.

Social factors play an important role and can be used to help explain the higher levels of absenteeism amongst obese individuals. A significant number of investigations found hiring prejudice towards obese persons. These individuals were more likely to receive negative judgements and lower job recommendations from employers. This affected women more than men. The position that was sought after was also a significant factor. Obese employees were found to earn less than their non-obese counterparts. Women were more likely to hold a low-paying job, while men tended to apply for jobs that were less likely to have wage penalties, such as transportation. These studies also found that an obese person also had a lower chance of promotion.

These findings show just how seriously the Australian workplace is being affected by obesity. This issue is severely costing both employees and employers, and it is important that it be addressed. With the obesity epidemic still on the rise, these problems will only worsen.

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