Feeling trapped in a bad job can be worse for your state of mind than being unemployed, researchers at the Australian National University's  Centre for Mental Health Research have found.

Using data from the 20-year Personality and Total Health (PATH) Through Life Project, psychologists looked at the mental health effects of being in a ‘bad job’ – a job with low security, high stress and little control.

“Our research had two main findings," team leader Dr Liana Leach. "First, we found that those in poor quality jobs had poorer mental health than those in good quality work. People who were in a bad job were five times more likely to be categorised as depressed and twice as likely to be categorised as anxious than those in good quality work."

The research established that, from a mental health viewpoint, you may be better off being in no job at all than being in a bad job.

“In our study," says Dr Leach," a bad job, or poor quality job, was one where people perceived their job was insecure, perhaps because they were on a short-term contract or casual work, they had high job demands or a heavy workload, and they didn’t have much control over how they managed that workload. They also felt that it would be difficult to gain another similar job, suggesting they felt trapped in their current workplace.”

The results indicate that, for employers, one of the keys to happy and mentally healthy employees is to keep an eye on these negative factors and work with staff to find solutions.

“The study suggests it would be best for employers to be open to negotiation with employees about their work conditions – making sure employees have reasonable workloads and some control over how they manage this workload is likely to produce employees with better mental health.

“For their part, employees might like to negotiate with employers to see if they can make their workplace one that benefits their wellbeing and mental health.

“Everybody has moments in their jobs where it’s difficult and you’re not enjoying what you’re doing, but we hope this study helps to improve people’s workplace environments so that we can improve their mental health too,” says Leach.