Breaks record: More and more people are experiencing work-related stress

More and more Danes are reporting stress as an occupational disease to the Economic Council of the Labour Movement (AE). This is shown by a new analysis conducted by AE.

Since 2019, the number of stress-related occupational diseases has increased by 50 percent, and the level has now reached its highest ever.

However, it is not always easy to measure the level of stress, says Kristoffer Lind Glavind, chief analyst at the Economic Council of the Labour Movement.

- There are many forms of stress and many ways to measure stress. None of them are perfect. In this study, we measure the very serious part of stress, and that is the figure we see rising and rising.

It is usually a doctor who assesses whether the stress illness should be reported as a work injury. The doctor is obliged to report it as a work injury to AE if the stress illness is caused by the work.

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Costs society a fortune

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It is expected that there is a large dark figure in the proportion of stress-related occupational diseases, as not all are reported to AE.

At the same time, only few stress-related occupational diseases are recognised as a work injury, says Kristoffer Lind Glavind.

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Diagnostic requirements for stress-related occupational diseases as work injury

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One of these diagnoses must be met for the stress-related occupational disease to be considered a work injury:

* Stressful working conditions

* Stress without specification

* Adjustment reaction without specification

* Acute stress reaction

* Adjustment disorder

- It is almost impossible to get a stress-related occupational disease recognised. Less than 5 percent of work-related occupational diseases are recognised, and this is because the burden of proof is very high.

- I think the very low recognition rate indicates that we have a problem in our workers' compensation system, where it is too difficult to get recognition.

It is an expensive and heavy burden for society when a citizen reports sick with stress. An analysis by AE from 2024 shows that work-related stress costs 55 billion kroner per year.

And even though employment has grown during the period, the number of stress-related occupational diseases per employee is at its highest level ever.

- There are almost 100,000 people who are out of the labour market due to stress, and of these, 39,000 are out of the labour market due to work-related stress, says Kristoffer Lind Glavind.

Female employees are affected three times as often as male employees. According to the analysis, this may be because women report work-related stress illnesses to a greater extent.

At the same time, it is especially employees in the major welfare professions who are affected, and here the analysis also points to differences in which sector men and women work in. Furthermore, employees with poor management are twice as often on long-term sick leave.

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The figures can be debated

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But at the Danish Employers' Association, they view the figures somewhat differently.

Beate Fabricius Ingerslev, who is political head of working environment and health, emphasises that the analysis from the Economic Council of the Labour Movement does indeed show an increase in the number of reports, but not in actual occurrences of work-related stress.

- We must remember that it is not necessarily an expression that more people are becoming seriously ill from their work, she says on P1 Morgen ( https://www.dr.dk/lyd/p1/p1-morgen/p1-morgen-2026/torsdag-12-november-2026-11802633464 ) and highlights that the economic wise men last month found no evidence that serious stress reactions have become more widespread over the last 15-20 years.

© Ritzau Scanpix

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Who are the economic wise men?

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The economic wise men (DØRS) are four independent economists who act as a fiscal watchdog. They monitor public finances, economic trends and economic policy.

The four economists are formally appointed by the Minister for Economic and Domestic Affairs.

The economic wise men consist, from left to right, of: Niels Lynggård Hansen, Chief Wise Man Jakob Roland Munch, Mette Ejrnæs and Jette Bredahl Jacobsen.

Source: dors.dk

- This challenges the Economic Council of the Labour Movement's narrative that we are witnessing a booming stress epidemic, she says.

It can be difficult to measure stress because there is no overarching tool or unambiguous unit of measurement for it. Therefore, the figures are debated, and this is a great frustration for both employers and employees, believes Beate Fabricius Ingerslev.

- We must once and for all put an end to this discussion about numbers. One of the things we are calling for is a measurement tool where we can agree on the figures and track developments over time, she says.

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Potential for improvement

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Although the discouraging figures in AE's analysis are debated, there is probably hope for the future.

Because according to AE, there is a gain to be made both for the individual and for society if we become better at preventing work-related stress.

Read also: Pia Olsen Dyhr's prevention fund receives criticism: '50 million will quickly be spent' ( https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/penge/pia-olsen-dyhrs-forebyggelsesfond-faar-kritik-50-millioner-faar-hurtigt-ben-gaa-paa )

In the Finance Bill proposal ( https://fm.dk/media/a5qdxxbc/et-staerkere-forsvar-af-danmark-et-styrket-danmark-at-forsvare_finanslovforslaget-2027-a.pdf ), the government proposes allocating 50 million to a prevention fund, which is to be established in 2027.

- It is such a large societal problem, and perhaps in reality the biggest problem after cancer, so we have to find some societal measures for it, says Pia Olsen Dyhr, Minister for Economic and Domestic Affairs (SF).

Here, Pia Olsen Dyhr talks about the new prevention fund on TVA on 22 October.

Warning: This article was translated by a Large Language Model, in case of doubt, you can always visit the original source.