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Zero hours contracts and self-reported (mental) health in the UK

Journal: British Journal of Industrial Relations

Date: 2024

Author: Egidio Farina, Colin Green, Duncan McVicar

Abstract:
This article examines associations between precarious contract types and a range of self-reported health measures for the UK. We focus on zero hours contracts (ZHCs), an extreme form of precarious employment that has grown rapidly in the UK over the last decade, and on mental health. We demonstrate that workers employed on ZHCs are more likely to report a long-term health condition than workers employed on other types of contract, with the main driver being that they are almost twice as likely to report mental ill health. These associations survive conditioning on an extensive set of observable individual, job and contextual characteristics, and are robust to sensitivity analysis designed to explore the likely extent of bias due to unobserved confounders. We discuss potential explanations for these associations, from sorting of workers with poor health into ZHC employment to detrimental effects of ZHC employment on health, drawing on additional instrumental variables estimates to do so. Finally, we discuss potential policy implications.

Link: Google Scholar

Background and Context

Zero Hours Contracts (ZHCs)

ZHCs are employment contracts where employers don't guarantee any work and have grown from 0.5% to 2.8% of UK employment between 2006-2017.

Precarious Nature

ZHCs offer minimal job security, unpredictable working hours, and typically lower pay, potentially affecting worker health and wellbeing.

Study Methodology

Researchers analyzed UK Quarterly Labour Force Survey data from 2015-2018, examining associations between ZHCs and health after controlling for worker and job characteristics.

ZHC Workers More Likely to Report Long-term Health Conditions

  • ZHC workers reported higher rates of long-term health conditions (29.5%) compared to non-ZHC workers (25.5%).
  • This pattern persisted even after controlling for demographic and job characteristics (2.9 percentage points higher).
  • These findings indicate potential health disparities between workers on different contract types.

ZHC Workers Almost Twice as Likely to Report Mental Health Conditions

  • Mental health conditions were reported by 5.8% of ZHC workers compared to 3.2% of non-ZHC workers.
  • After controlling for observable characteristics, ZHC workers were 1.7 percentage points more likely to report mental ill health.
  • This represents approximately 50% higher prevalence of mental health conditions among ZHC workers.

ZHCs Have Stronger Association with Mental Health Than Other Precarious Contracts

  • ZHCs show the strongest association with mental health conditions compared to other types of precarious employment.
  • Only fixed-period contracts show a small positive association (0.007), but still smaller than ZHCs (0.017).
  • These comparative results suggest that the particular form of insecurity in ZHCs may be especially problematic.

Mental Health Effects of ZHCs Vary by Worker Characteristics

Stronger Mental Health Effects for Some Groups Age Stronger for younger workers Origin Stronger for UK-born workers Sector Stronger in private sector Tenure Stronger in first year Industries Varies by sector
  • Mental health effects are stronger for younger workers (16-49) than for older workers (50+).
  • UK-born workers show stronger associations (0.020) than migrants (0.006) between ZHCs and mental health.
  • Private sector ZHC jobs show stronger links to mental health issues than public sector positions.

Two Key Explanations for ZHC and Mental Health Association

Potential Explanations Causal Effect Job insecurity Unpredictable hours Limited sick leave Worker Sorting Employer preferences Labor market segmentation Screening mechanisms
  • ZHCs may directly cause poorer mental health through job insecurity and unpredictable schedules.
  • Workers with existing mental health conditions might be sorted into ZHC jobs in segmented labor markets.
  • Instrumental variables analysis provides evidence suggestive of a causal effect of ZHCs on mental health.

Contribution and Implications

  • ZHC workers are disproportionately affected by poor mental health compared to other workers, even after controlling for demographics.
  • The association between ZHCs and mental health is stronger than for other precarious employment types.
  • Policy implications include targeted mental health support for ZHC workers and potential regulation of this contract type.
  • Increased regulation could potentially improve mental health outcomes for workers, particularly in the private sector.

Data Sources

  • Charts 1 and 2 use data from Table 2, showing health conditions by ZHC status based on UK QLFS 2015-2018.
  • Chart 3 visualizes data from Table 3, showing regression coefficients for different contract types and mental health outcomes.
  • SVG visualization on demographic differences based on Table 5, showing estimated coefficients across worker groups and job characteristics.
  • Explanatory SVG derives from discussion section outlining potential causal mechanisms and sorting effects on pages 65-67.