Fortunes may be at their fingertips, but Hong Kong banks' clerical staff suffer from poor health because of the strains of the job, according to a survey.
It found bank staff worked long hours with heavy workloads, often in unsafe and crammed spaces that left most suffering from occupational illnesses and pressure.
The Hong Kong Banking Employees Association, which carried out the survey between August and November, likened the work conditions to a 'slow poison' eating away at the health of staff.
Ninety per cent of 279 bank staff interviewed said they had suffered body pain in the past year, mostly in the neck, shoulders, upper back and wrist.
Forty per cent said they worked more than 10 hours a day.
Association chairwoman Lee Lai-ching said of the working condition in banks: 'The chairs are too high and uncomfortable for bank tellers, and the tables are tall also. Most have to stand to work. And their elbows have nowhere to rest as the table is so narrow and tall.
'Banks have increased the comfort of customers by providing seating for them, but bank tellers are left with a very crammed working environment.'