Travel agency staff in Britain are under such stress at work that many are taking medication, Travel Weekly UK has reported.
A former travel-trade union official, Seyi Clement, said many shop staff were taking prescribed drugs such as Prozac to get through the day.
He said aggressive management and the over-use of disciplinary action were often to blame.
Clement claimed the travel industry had more people on Prozac than any other - more than sectors where staff suffered physical attacks.
He added that more long-term depression and sickness was suffered in the travel trade than in construction, on the railways, in freight companies or the docks.
Clement, a former negotiations officer at the Transport Salaried Staffs Association, spoke out on industry drug use after leaving the union after five years at the end of last month.
He claimed 60 per cent of his time had been spent dealing with agents’ problems, most of them attributable to stress.
He said unpaid overtime had become endemic, with staff expected to attend training in their own time, work through lunch and stay late.
He said that of those who quit their jobs, as many as four out of five left the trade for good.
Only one in five leavers went to another agency.
Clement said he understood that companies faced huge pressure on margins but he blamed a lack of management training for the high stress levels, and said there was no excuse for bosses being aggressive and oppressive.
Clement also admitted he was appalled how poorly agents were paid, and accused companies of taking advantage of the dedication shown by staff.