MELBOURNE, Australia, June 3 (UPI) -- Australian researchers say workers' compensation statistics under-represent depression linked to job stress.
Study leader Tony LaMontagne of the University of Melbourne estimates one out of six cases of depression is caused by job stress and is preventable. The researchers define job stress as high job demands combined with low control over how the job gets done.
The study, published in BMC Public Health, is based on job stress data collected from a 2003 survey of 1,100 workers in Victoria, Australia. Numbers of prevalent depression cases among those working were estimated from the National Mental Health survey and workers' compensation statistics obtained from a national database.
The study also found more working women than men experience job stress and job stress is more likely in lower-skilled occupations. One in five working women suffering depression can attribute their condition to job stress and more than one in eight working men with depression have problems due to job stress, the study determined.
"The evidence shows that improving job control, moderating demands and providing more support from supervisors and co-workers makes a difference," LaMontagne said in a statement.
