Older workers are healthier, especially in capital cities
Older workers had lower rates of heart disease, diabetes, obesity and arthritis than their non-working peers, according to a recent analysis of the 2004-05 National Health Survey by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The report found that mature age workers (between 45-74 years) were slightly healthier than their non-working counterparts, with eight in 10 workers having a chronic health condition such as, cardiovascular disease, diabetes or obesity, compared with nine in 10 of the non-working population.
Cardiovascular disease and arthritis each affected around a quarter of all mature age workers, compared with half of non-workers.
However, similar proportions of workers and non-workers aged 45-74 years were overweight or obese (58% and 55% respectively).
On the other hand, 7% of mature age people reported that they had a condition (arthritis, osteoporosis, asthma, cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes or mental problem) come about because of their work.
Work related conditions include a high proportion of disc disorders, (42%), back problems (41%) and hearing loss (32%).
Other findings include:
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Mature age workers in capital cities were less likely to have a chronic condition (77%), than those outside of the capital cities (83%).
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Mature age workers living in disadvantaged areas have higher rates of nearly all chronic diseases (81%), compared with the most affluent areas (78%).
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Tradespeople aged 45-74 years were more likely to have a chronic health condition (84%), than professionals (75%).
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Even with a major health condition, 56% of mature age workers still assessed their health as very good or excellent, compared with 31% of those who were not working.
Further information is available in Health of Mature Age Workers in Australia: A Snapshot (cat no. 4837.0.55.001), available for free downloading from the ABS website.
