Work-related tiredness has increased in the last 10 years, according to a study by researchers at the Swedish National Institute for Working Life.
Surveying mentally and physically tiring work in the 1990s, the researchers found the increase is considerable among groups such as teachers, nurses and transport workers. Only computer specialists show the same low levels of tiredness across the various surveys.
In the study, the researchers grouped 30,000 workers according to different kinds of tiredness.
They identified one group which was physically tired and felt listless after work and another which generally had difficulty relaxing after work.
A third group, around half of those surveyed, reported that they were unaffected by tiredness after a day''s work.
Six occupations were analyzed separately: teachers, nurses, cleaners, transport workers, engineering workers and computer specialists.
Results showed that different kinds of tiredness were linked to different occupations.
A large and growing proportion of teachers were unable to relax after work and had difficulty sleeping due to thinking about work.
The collation of results also showed that the proportion of men reporting that they are tired and listless after work at least once a week has increased from a quarter to a third of respondents.
The proportion of women who find it difficult to sleep due to thinking about work increased from 15 percent to 21 percent between 1969 and 1997.
Only among computer specialists were the figures the same over a 10 year period, with two-thirds being able to relax after work.
by Virginia Sutcliffe