Promotion means a pay boost – and four years of ill health

GETTING a promotion may boost your bank balance, but research suggests it could damage your health.

Men and women who get bumped up the career ladder complain of being sicker and more depressed after taking on their new responsibilities.

The damaging effects last for up to four years, the study showed. After that, health starts to improve as workers adapt to their new roles.

The findings contradict earlier studies which suggested career success reduced the risk of heart disease over the subsequent 15 years. Experts now think promotion may trigger adverse effects on health in the short term but prove beneficial in the long run.

Stockholm University researchers studied 1,400 men and 2,000 women in Sweden for six years. Nearly two-thirds reported no job promotions between 2008 and 2014, but nearly 700 were promoted once, 367 twice and 139 three times. And nearly 50 got moved up the career ladder four times.

The volunteers were asked to rate their general health on a scale ranging from ‘very good’ to ‘very bad’. They were also asked questions designed to gauge their levels of depression.

Those promoted within the previous two to four years were more likely to report declining health. Men were more likely to suffer mental health problems, while women were more prone to work-induced physical illness.

The researchers told the International Journal Of Epidemiology: ‘Job promotion is associated with decreased self-rated health and increased depression in both men and women for up to four years. But health may start improving again four to eight years after the promotion.

‘It may have a negative health effect only in the short term.’

Professor Sir Cary Cooper, an expert in organisational psychology at Manchester Business School, said: ‘Being promoted often means longer hours and greater responsibilities – which can take a toll on your health until you eventually adjust to it. Not everyone is suited to promotion.’