How Risky Is Overtime, Really?

Limits on overtime hamper many European and U.S. manufacturers in their efforts to compete effectively against low-wage overseas companies. But our empirical work with International Truck and Engine (ITEC) suggests that across-the-board limitations on the length of the workweek are too simplistic. Such limits are based on the assertion that long work hours are harmful […]

by

Harris Allen

and

William Bunn, MD

by

Harris Allen

and

William Bunn, MD

From the Magazine (May 2007)

Summary.

Reprint: F0705E

Not all that much, empirical data from two medical researchers suggest.

Limits on overtime hamper many European and U.S. manufacturers in their efforts to compete effectively against low-wage overseas companies. But our empirical work with International Truck and Engine (ITEC) suggests that across-the-board limitations on the length of the workweek are too simplistic.

A version of this article appeared in the May 2007 issue of Harvard Business Review.

HA

Harris Allen (harris@harrisallengroup.com) is the principal of the Harris Allen Group, a consulting firm based in Brookline, Massachusetts, and a lecturer in health and productivity at Yale University’s School of Medicine.
WB

William Bunn, MD (william.bunn@nav-international.com) is the vice president for health, safety, security, and productivity at International Truck and Engine, in Warrenville, Illinois, and a professor at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.

How Risky Is Overtime, Really?

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