Women in Netherlands take twice as many stress-related sick days as men
Work absences due to stress in the Netherlands have risen sharply in recent years, with women—particularly those between ages 25 and 45—disproportionately affected, according to new data from occupational health services HumanCapitalCare and ArboNed, Nu.nl reports.
Over the past five years, the number of sick days linked to stress has increased by 43 percent. Workers who drop out due to stress are typically unable to work for an average of eight to 10 months. Figures from last year show women took twice as many sick days for stress-related issues as men.
“That doesn’t surprise me,” developmental psychologist Lianne Hulsbosch told Nu.nl. “It is the period in which many women become pregnant and give birth. Life is turned upside down then.” She added, “They get stuck and do not dare to ask for help.” Hormonal changes are also a contributing factor, experts said. In addition to pregnancy, women experience menstruation and eventually menopause.
Hulsbosch noted that women often carry a heavy overall burden. “Women have taken on so much,” she said. “They have started working more but do not do much less at home.”
Many women also work in sectors facing labor shortages, such as healthcare and education, where their roles are difficult to replace. “These are jobs where others depend on them,” Vos said, adding that this can make it harder to call in sick or leave early. “Perhaps women are therefore more likely to push beyond their own limits.”
Iris Homeijer, director of medical affairs at HumanCapitalCare, described women’s health as a “blind spot” in the workplace. “Complaints related to mental strain and hormonal fluctuations are still reported, seen, or recognized too little,” she told Nu.nl.
Solutions, she said, must extend beyond the workplace. “That also means making room for conversations at the kitchen table—about capacity, expectations, and a fair distribution of work and caregiving tasks.”
