ABSTRACT
The United States is facing its greatest economic crisis since the “great depression” with rising unemployment rates, 1 a large wealth and income gap between the rich and poor, and a fraying social safety net. At the same time, conditions at work are deteriorating for most working people. Numerous news stories have reported on studies and surveys documenting high stress levels among the U.S. workforce and demonstrating the importance of work stress in causing mental and physical illness. In a survey released by the American Psychological Association in October 2007, 74% of Americans acknowledged feeling stressed about work [1]. 2 In addition, there has been press coverage of recent research reporting 1) that work stress contributes to depression [2] and 2) that returning to work at a high-stress job (one with chronic high demands and low control, or “job strain”) for someone with a previous heart attack places them at greater risk of a repeat heart attack [3, 4], adding to the evidence that work stressors have effects on many common health outcomes.
