125 Sick Days, An Office Romance & 6 Job Changes: The Things That Are Likely To Happen During Your Career

When it comes to our careers we all go through a few changes over the years but did you know that the average working adult will have six jobs, 12 pay rises and one office romance during the course of their professional life?

A new survey conducted by healthcare provider Benenden Health has found that when it comes to work, we’re all pretty similiar.

The survey revealed that we tend to take an average of 125 sick days, arrive late 188 times and have at least 10 job interviews. As well as all of this, most of us will have 875 complaints about coworkers or our boss and three major fall-outs with other people in the business.

And if you’re currently out of work, don’t worry – the average worker will endure at least one period on the dole or redundancy.

The downside is that the survey also found that workers are likely to experience three periods of stress caused by long working hours, unmanageable workloads and friction with other employees.

We're likely to have at least one office romance during our career

“We hear how workers are working longer and harder than ever but this health check of the average adult’s working life confirms what we feared,” said Paul Keenan, a spokesman for Benenden Health.

“Within an average career span, you’re likely to find reasons to grumble 14 times a year, yet will only change jobs once a decade. Heavy workloads and disagreements with colleagues can all take a toll on our well-being. Many are seeing this spill over into the home,” he added.

Modern workers are more at risk of developing stress and the vast majority of employees are likely to spend at least one period of their life signed off work because of stress.

Financal stability is also a massive concern for employees. Despite the fact that the survey shows we receive (on average) 12 pay rises over the course of 62.5 years, we all still struggle to cope with the cost of living.

The survey found that many people will work their way through two periods of financial worry and are likely to take up a second job in order to make ends meet.

“There are positives – for exmaple, those losing control of a work-life balance are still in the minority,” said Mr Keenan, speaking about the results of the survey.

“But with over a third of people needing to find second jobs, maintaining this balance will become a losing battle,” he added.