Being made redundant makes you happier than being in a dead-end job

[mc_squared]

Being made redundant makes you happier than being in a dead-end job

 

 

By Daily Mail Reporter

Last updated at 1:08 PM on 15th October 2010

 

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Job unsatisfaction: A new study from the BMC Public Health journal suggests people's mental health suffers much more from being in a poor job than in no job

 

Being made redundant can make you much happier than clinging on to a job you fear you might lose, according to a new study.

Scientists found those without work were likely to be more content than people in posts with little job security, an unrealistic workload or poor prospects.

Previous research has shown that workers have better mental health than unemployed people, so efforts to promote mental well-being focus on getting people back to work.

But the new study suggests people's mental health suffers much more from being in poor jobs.

Psychiatrist Dr Liana Leach, who led the study, said: 'Any job is not necessarily better than no job at all.

'We found that it's not about a particular type of job because poor conditions can occur in any kind of occupation.'

The research may provide scant solace for those who fear losing their jobs in the wake of projected spending cutbacks.

The scientists studied around 4,000 people who completed a survey about their employment status and conditions as well as their mental well-being.

The same survey was repeated four years later.

 

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Dr Leach of Australian National University, Canberra, said the findings were important for employers as well as government programmes designed to find work for the unemployed.

She said: 'Programmes are often focused on getting people into any type of work as quickly as possible.

'This study shows that if it's not focused on moving people into work that satisfies them, we are less likely to see the benefits.'

The research is published in the journal BMC Public Health.

 

 

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1320773/Being-redundant-makes-happier-dead-end-job.html#ixzz12TU1xzdx

[bart]

In my last job of which I held for 6 years, torwards the end there was a press relase that our company was shedding 6000 jobs. Pre 2001 we all had great contracts of which meant we would have all be quids in if we would have been laid off. This did not happen, since our office was the best office in the country.

 

Then I just left and moved to Barcelona.

Sometimes Redunancy can be a blessing in disguse in the trade I am in, the contracts are normally gnerous when it comes to things like this. !

[Reilly]

So let's get this straight, being redundant makes you happier?

 

I didn't even read the article, that's clearly insane.

[Crests]

Redundancy <3

[PolarMonkey]

So let's get this straight, being redundant makes you happier?

 

I didn't even read the article, that's clearly insane.

 

i'm sure that it only applies if you are in a dead-end job that you're (obviously) already unhappy with. in which case being made redundant could be seen as a blessing in disguise.

[mc_squared]

i'm sure that it only applies if you are in a dead-end job that you're (obviously) already unhappy with. in which case being made redundant could be seen as a blessing in disguise.

 

Exactly. And if you're in a job you clearly hate, it would be better to get out anyway before it starts to have a detrimental effect on your health.;)

[busybeeburns]

a nice redundancy package makes it even better!

[mc_squared]

a nice redundancy package makes it even better!

 

Clearly that would make a big difference if you were lucky enough to get it.

[Reilly]

i'm sure that it only applies if you are in a dead-end job that you're (obviously) already unhappy with. in which case being made redundant could be seen as a blessing in disguise.

 

Haha, I don't know how easy to get a job it is where you are, but I know people who are in debt and have been looking for work for MONTHS, and can't pay the bills. What the article completely leaves out the whole other side of redundancy: you get no money. Scraping for some form of quality of life certainly has it's affect on mental health too, and luckily I've never been in a situation where I've had to look for work on a daily basis (Which is a job in itself) but it seems really hard.

 

OK, if you mean the initial part of being fired is better for you, then great, the first weeks or months are like a big holiday. But there's no way that being made redundant, in this economical climate, is a positive thing. If your job was so bad before and you still got fired from it, not much chance that you're going to get a better one.

[Black Rose]

a nice redundancy package makes it even better!

 

Oh yeah :)

[PolarMonkey]

Haha, I don't know how easy to get a job it is where you are, but I know people who are in debt and have been looking for work for MONTHS, and can't pay the bills. What the article completely leaves out the whole other side of redundancy: you get no money. Scraping for some form of quality of life certainly has it's affect on mental health too, and luckily I've never been in a situation where I've had to look for work on a daily basis (Which is a job in itself) but it seems really hard.

 

OK, if you mean the initial part of being fired is better for you, then great, the first weeks or months are like a big holiday. But there's no way that being made redundant, in this economical climate, is a positive thing. If your job was so bad before and you still got fired from it, not much chance that you're going to get a better one.

 

you seem to be implying that i'm saying it's great to be sitting around not having a job & being in debt. let's be clear: i'm not. & if a person were made redundant from a job they loved or thought of as their "dream job", then obviously they won't be happy right from the moment the news was given to them. & yes, looking for a job is in itself a job & not a particularly fun one at that.

 

i'm merely saying it COULD be a blessing in disguise as in it could lead a person who is in a job they are unhappy in but for some reason (comfort zone or financial security) is afraid to move on to work towards getting a job they will love this time around.

 

& being made redundant doesn't mean a job is really bad or that the person cannot get a job. i know people who were made redundant during the height of the recession but found employment elsewhere. plus, a job that a person is unhappy with is not necessarily a bad job for everyone else.

[Reilly]

Sorry but:

 

Being made redundant makes you happier than being in a dead-end job

 

Is the point of the article, not that it could (in some certain ways possibly in rare circumstances where you find a better job) make you happier. Well of course it could make you happier, that's not much of a point to me because it just runs everything into hypothetical situations. Yes you could get fired and as you leave the workplace you happen to buy a scratch card and win 100 grand, there's one situation.

 

What I'm getting at is, generally, for the vast majority of people, even in 'dead end' jobs, it is definitely not a good thing to be made redundant, and this article is a big load of nonsense.

 

If we look at it by numbers, let's say probably 1 in 4 people hate their jobs, and probably 1 in 5 of them would actually leave if simply given the option, those would be the rare people who simply didn't have the balls to just quit like most people would. This is what this news article is relating to, the very rare person who hates their job so much they'd actually quit it if someone asked them to.

 

For the people mentioned in this article who hate their job so much, why don't they just quit? Newsflash- it's the same thing as being redundant.

 

So yes, you are right in that it could hypothetically be a good thing for people in certain situations, but if that had nothing to do with the actual article then I don't get why you wrote it, of course it could be good for people in certain situations, we already knew that. The article is somehow stating that generally people are happier being made redundant, and like I said, that's clearly insane, most people are fighting for their jobs right now and to see this just totally takes the piss.

[Black Rose]

For the people mentioned in this article who hate their job so much, why don't they just quit? Newsflash- it's the same thing as being redundant.

 

Quitting/getting the sack isn´t the same as being made redundant, when you get made redundant the company has to pay you money, normally something like 1 weeks tax-free wages per year you have worked for the company. But it´s only good if you can find another job which you "like".

 

Better getting the choice to be made redundant with a pay-out than it is to get sacked/leaving a few months down the line because you don´t like the new area the company has put you in or can´t cope with the extra work.

[busybeeburns]

In this current economic climate there has got to be thousands of people in "dead end jobs" hanging on to them hoping to be made redundant.

 

Win (£££), Win (fuck you boss) situation. And voluntary redundancy in some sectors is even more profitable!