HR is one of the healthiest careers in Australia, new data reveals

Three factors – health impact and harm, work pattern and environment, and health behaviours and lifestyle risk – determined the overall index score.

Health insurance comparison service iSelect found the profession exhibited comparatively minimal stress, lower physical risk, and relatively healthy lifestyle habits, bolstered by flexible work patterns and conditions.

The findings concluded that business, human resources, and marketing professionals ranked second in the current healthiest careers.

Surprisingly, farming and farm managers came out on top. However, it is important to note that farm management can include overseeing farm operations and strategy, and agriculture itself did not appear in the top 10 healthiest industries.

With farming as the outlier and ICT professionals ranking third, the healthiest occupations tended towards professional, office-based roles with comparatively low risks of injury and distress, with flexible working arrangements a strong factor.

Regarding industry rankings, professional, scientific, and technical services ranked seventh. Higher-ranking industries were auxiliary finance and insurance services, finance, telecommunications, computer system design and related services, property, and water and sewage services.

As with career trends, healthy industries often exhibited low physical risk, a controlled and structured environment, and limited exposure to acute incidents. Patterns in high vegetable and fruit consumption also emerged.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, protective service workers, other labourers and machine and stationary plant operators were determined as the unhealthiest careers, often due to demanding work patterns and environment, high mental stress, and physical risk.

In addition, the unhealthiest overall industries recorded higher mental stress and physical injury claims, poor workplace conditions, and, oftentimes, night and shift work.

Topping this list was public order, safety and regulatory services, with coal mining and residential care rounding out the top three. Beyond physical demands, worksite culture and its effect on alcohol consumption were significant factors.

While all positions have their benefits and disadvantages, HR has emerged as a strongly healthy career. A low health impact score, only 0.40 mental stress claims per million hours and low physical injury claims, 2.2 per cent, prove why.

In addition, almost three in four professionals were able to work from home.

However, like many office-based positions, a sedentary lifestyle can impact health behaviours and lifestyle. Of those working in HR, only 31 per cent met physical activity guidelines, and less than half hit recommended fruit intake, and only 5.6 per cent ate the recommended amount of vegetables.

And while daily smokers represented 3.8 per cent, and 14.4 per cent exceeded lifetime alcohol risk, these numbers were low comparatively. As always, there is room for improvement, and often small changes can make an overall difference to health.

Andres Gutierrez, general manager for health at iSelect, highlighted supportive wellbeing activities such as “maintaining regular physical activity, limiting smoking and alcohol consumption, and eating a balanced diet” to support overall wellbeing.

He said: “Employers can also play a role by providing flexible schedules, reducing unnecessary night or shift work, and creating safer, more supportive work environments.”