Smaller Company Size and Lower Salary Linked to Feeling "Depressed"

Jikjang Gapjil 119, Workplace Depression Scale Survey

The smaller the company size or the more unstable the employment type, the more workplace bullying occurred, and the more workplace bullying experienced by workers, the higher their levels of depression.

In a depression scale survey conducted by Workplace Bullying 119 commissioned to the public opinion research firm Embrain Public, targeting 1,000 workers aged 19 and older nationwide from December 4 to 11 last year, the average depression scale score of Korean workers was 5.62 points, indicating that they generally experienced depressive symptoms. The questionnaire was based on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and total scores of 20?27 points suggest severe depression suspicion, 10?19 points indicate moderate depression suspicion, 5?9 points indicate mild depressive symptoms, and 0?4 points indicate no depressive symptoms.

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In particular, there was a difference in depression scale scores depending on whether the respondent had experienced workplace bullying. The average depression scale score of respondents who had not experienced workplace bullying was 4.64 points, whereas those who had experienced it scored 8.23 points, showing a significant gap.

Among respondents who experienced workplace bullying, those with unstable employment and working in smaller companies showed relatively higher depression scale scores. The depression scale score for regular employees was 7.73 points, while for non-regular employees it was 8.90 points. For workplaces with 30 or more employees and public institutions, the depression scale score was 7.16 points, whereas for non-regular employees and workplaces with fewer than 30 employees, it was 9.74 points.

Looking at the response rates by item, non-regular employees had higher rates than regular employees on items such as "I thought I was at fault or had failed / I thought I disappointed myself and my family" (non-regular 50.3% · regular 34.7%) and "I felt down, depressed, or hopeless" (non-regular 59.3% · regular 45.5%).

Additionally, the lower the wage level or age, and the shorter the length of service, the higher the overall response rate of experiencing depression. In particular, the proportion agreeing with the item "I thought it would be better to die / I thought about self-harm" was significantly higher among those in their 20s (31.3%) than those in their 50s (15.0%), those with less than one month of employment (36.9%) than those with over five years (11.5%), and those earning less than 1.5 million KRW per month (27.4%) than those earning over 5 million KRW (13.8%). When classified by company size, responses from workers in companies with fewer than 5 employees were more than 10 percentage points higher than those from companies with 300 or more employees and public institutions.

A representative from Workplace Bullying 119 stated, "It has been confirmed that factors determining workers' status in the workplace, such as experience of workplace bullying, employment stability, company size, wage level, age, and length of service, can affect workers' mental health. Especially since the depression scale is higher among workplaces with fewer than 5 employees and indirectly employed workers, it is necessary to promptly improve laws and systems to eliminate legal blind spots."