Windjammer
ELITE MEMBER
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2009
- Messages
- 41,319
- Reaction score
- 181
- Country
- Location
Indian call centre workers 'depressed and hooked on drugs'
Pity the poor, derided Indian call centre operator who fields your insurance claims and computer problems he is likely to be sleep deprived, depressed and hooked on drugs, according to a new study.
The study, carried out by sleep disorder specialists, found more than 80 per cent of staff in call centres close to the capital New Delhi were showing signs of depression.
Their symptoms are linked to the disruption to their normal sleep patterns by working regular night shifts, the researchers said.
The study, conducted by a team led by Dr J.C. Suri, head of the Indian Sleep Disorders Association, compared a group of daytime workers aged 19 to 37 with call centre staff on night shifts.
While 81 per cent of call centre workers showed signs of depression, only one in six of the day workers displayed the same symptoms. The call centre workers drank more heavily and a quarter regularly took illegal drugs, compared with only four per cent of day workers.
"These young people have to work when their bodies want to sleep and they have to sleep when their bodies are awake to face the day. As a result, they resort to consuming stimulants like coffee and energy drinks throughout the night, and use alcohol or sedatives to put them to sleep during the day," said Dr Suri.
He said their body clocks cannot adjust to the Western time zones they serve. "The body's clock is programmed, both genetically as well as by habit from birth, to remain active during the daytime," he added.
Indian call centre workers 'depressed and hooked on drugs' - Telegraph
Pity the poor, derided Indian call centre operator who fields your insurance claims and computer problems he is likely to be sleep deprived, depressed and hooked on drugs, according to a new study.
The study, carried out by sleep disorder specialists, found more than 80 per cent of staff in call centres close to the capital New Delhi were showing signs of depression.
Their symptoms are linked to the disruption to their normal sleep patterns by working regular night shifts, the researchers said.
The study, conducted by a team led by Dr J.C. Suri, head of the Indian Sleep Disorders Association, compared a group of daytime workers aged 19 to 37 with call centre staff on night shifts.
While 81 per cent of call centre workers showed signs of depression, only one in six of the day workers displayed the same symptoms. The call centre workers drank more heavily and a quarter regularly took illegal drugs, compared with only four per cent of day workers.
"These young people have to work when their bodies want to sleep and they have to sleep when their bodies are awake to face the day. As a result, they resort to consuming stimulants like coffee and energy drinks throughout the night, and use alcohol or sedatives to put them to sleep during the day," said Dr Suri.
He said their body clocks cannot adjust to the Western time zones they serve. "The body's clock is programmed, both genetically as well as by habit from birth, to remain active during the daytime," he added.
Indian call centre workers 'depressed and hooked on drugs' - Telegraph