Low wages linked to high mortality risk

(CNN/KYMA, KECY) – Middle-aged workers who tend to earn low wages have a higher mortality risk.

That's according to a study published in the medical journal "Jama".

Researchers tracked employment and health metrics for about 400,000 workers in the U.S. over a 12-year period.

All the participants were at least 50 years old when the study began and in their sixties at the end of the study.

Workers with a sustained history of low wages were 38% more likely to die over the course of 12 years than those who never experienced low-wage earnings.

Low wages are considered annual income below the poverty line for a family of four.

The mortality risk was more than twice as high for workers with unstable employment and sustained low wages.