Obese employees may be less productive at work: Study

Obese people may be less productive at work due to an increased risk of disease, which will increase costs for companies, according to an industry-backed study presented at ENDO 2023, the Endocrine Society’s annual conference in Chicago, Ill. Obesity is a significant public health issue affecting approximately 42% of the population in the United States.

Employees who are overweight or obese are more likely to develop weight-related co-morbidities such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, heart disease and cancer, all of which contribute to lower work productivity.

Eli Lilly and Company MD, Claire J. “Overweight and obese employees may have higher rates of absenteeism, short- and long-term disability, and a higher loss of work productivity, depending on employee compensation, than normal-weight employees,” Lee said. in Indianapolis, Ind.

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Co-author Shraddha Shinde MBA, also of Eli Lilly & Company, said that “Given the substantial burden of overweight and obesity on employee health and work, which was demonstrated by this study, employers should consider such tailored interventions.” attention should be paid to constructs that may be beneficial in improving the health of these individuals.”

Researchers evaluated 719,482 employees with and without obesity in the MarketScan database. They determined the percentage of employees with loss of work, the number of hours/days lost from work, and the cost associated with productivity loss were higher among those who were overweight or obese. The loss of work productivity was greater with each higher body mass index (BMI) category.

The researchers found that absenteeism, short- and long-term disability, and worker’s compensation were $891, $623, $41, and $112 per year (respectively) higher for people with obesity than people of normal weight.