It's official - your job might be killing you

A correlation between toxic workplaces and death has been uncovered in a new study. File photo / Thinkstock

You've always suspected it, but now you have proof - your job might just be killing you.

A new study conducted by the Tel Aviv University has reported a correlation between toxic workplaces and death.

The 20 year study - which has been published in Health Psychology - sought to examine the relationship between one's workplace and their risk of death.

Researchers recruited 820 adults in 1988 and then interviewed them in detail about their workplace conditions.

Questions included how nice their colleagues were, whether their boss was supportive and how much autonomy they had in their position.

Participants - who ranged in age from 25-65 - worked in a variety of fields, including finance, health care, manufacturing and insurance. By the time the study concluded in 2008, 58 participants had died.

The study found that those who died were significantly more likely than those who survived to report having a hostile work environment.

People who reported having little or no social support from their co-workers were 2.4 times more likely to die during the course of the study than those who said they had close, supportive bonds with their workmates - although those with horrible bosses were no more likely to die than others.

Men who said they had more autonomy at work had a lower risk of dying during the study period than men with less freedom, but women who reported having power at work had a 70 per cent increased risk of death.