A person's job plays a key role in weight gain.
That's according to a recent CareerBuilder survey. The survey found 48 percent of healthcare employees have gained weight at their present job. That's higher than financial services (46 percent), sales (46 percent), retail (40 percent), manufacturing (39 percent) and IT (38 percent). However, it's still lower than transportation (49 percent).
The national survey was conducted on behalf of CareerBuilder by Harris Poll between Feb. 10 and March 17, 2016, and included a representative sample of more than 3,000 full-time, U.S. workers in the private sector across industries and company sizes.
Here are six other findings from the survey.
1. Fifty-five percent of U.S. employees feel they are overweight, and 44 percent of workers have gained weight in their current job.
2. Fewer than half — 41 percent — of U.S. employees with extremely low stress levels feel they are overweight compared to 77 percent of workers with extremely high stress levels. CareerBuilder said this means workers with extremely high on-the-job stress are 53 percent more likely to say they're overweight than workers with extremely low stress.
3. Although 25 percent of U.S. employees have access to employer sponsored wellness benefits, including onsite workout facilities and gym passes, 55 percent of this group does not take advantage of them.
"Workers are becoming more and more health conscious, but due to higher stress, longer work days and constant multitasking, it is more difficult to find the time to act on wellness goals," Rosemary Haefner, chief human resources officer for CareerBuilder, said in a prepared statement. "To make wellness at work a priority, companies should emphasize its importance from top leadership down and focus on engagement, motivation, support and strategy when implementing new programs."
4. The survey also found U.S. employees who managed to lose weight at their current job tend to snack and eat out less, exercise more and take advantage of their employers' wellness benefits. For instance, 55 percent of workers who have lost weight at their current job eat takeout or dine out at least once week for lunch, compared to 63 percent of workers who have gained weight at their present job.
5. The survey also looked at gender. According to the survey, 49 percent of female U.S. employees report gaining weight at their present jobs, compared to 39 percent of male employees.
6. Additionally, the survey found U.S. employees in the middle of their careers appear more prone to weight gain than younger or mature workers. Forty-seven percent of workers ages 35-54 reported gaining weight at their present job, compared to 40 percent of workers ages 18-34 and 43 percent of workers 55 and older.
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