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PubMed2002

Self-reported sleep quality, strain and health in relation to perceived working conditions in females.

Self-reported sleep quality, strain and health in relation to perceived working conditions in females The aims of this study were to examine self-reported sleep quality, perceived strain and health in relation to working conditions; the prevalence and severity of sleep disturbances and daytime distress arising from poor sleep in women on different work shifts. Furthermore, to see whether females with gastrointestinal symptoms, joint-, back- or muscle-pain and who are dissatisfied with working hours differ with regard to the above aspects. Finally, degree of strain-related symptoms and sleep difficulties were tested as predictors of sleep quality and general health outcome. Important research questions are whether registered nurses and those on rotating work shifts have greater sleep problems than others. A total of 156 females, aged 20-59 years, working at three different casualty departments, answered structured questionnaires. The results showed a persistently high rate of psycho-physiological long-term effects of stress related to working conditions. Thirty-four per cent were dissatisfied with their working hours, and exhibited significantly more mental strain, fatigue/excessive tiredness and inability to relax after work because of involuntary thoughts, in relation to working conditions than others did. Sixty-two females (39.7%) complained of insufficient sleep. The sleep quality outcome was significantly predicted by difficulty falling asleep (odds ratio 8.4), difficulty in falling asleep after nocturnal awakening (odds ratio 3.4) and perceived exhaustion (odds ratio 2.6). Females suffering from gastrointestinal symptoms and joint-, back- and muscle symptoms for several days in a week or even everyday were especially sensitive to worse sleep quality. Independent of work shifts, registered nurses exhibited a higher degree of mental strain and prolonged recovery in comparison with others. In conclusions, sleep initiation difficulties, troubled sleep and exhaustion significantly predicted reduced sleep quality outcome with decreased resilience to stress and vulnerability to psycho-physiological disorders in females working within the health care system.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Psychosocial and other working conditions in relation to body mass index in a representative sample of Australian workers.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between psychosocial and other working conditions and body-mass index (BMI) in a working population. This study contributes to the approximately dozen investigations of job stress, which have demonstrated mixed positive and negative results in relation to obesity, overweight and BMI. METHODS: A cross-sectional population-based survey was conducted among working Australians in the state of Victoria. Participants were contacted by telephone from a random sample of phone book listings. Information on body mass index was self-reported as were psychosocial work conditions assessed using the demand/control and effort/reward imbalance models. Other working conditions measured included working hours, shift work, and physical demand. Separate linear regression analyses were undertaken for males and females, with adjustment for potential confounders. RESULTS: A total of 1101 interviews (526 men and 575 women) were completed. Multivariate models (adjusted for socio-demographics) demonstrated no associations between job strain, as measured using the demand/control model, or ERI using the effort/reward imbalance model (after further adjustment for over commitment) and BMI among men and women. Multivariate models demonstrated a negative association between low reward and BMI among women. Among men, multivariate models demonstrated positive associations between high effort, high psychological demand, long working hours and BMI and a negative association between high physical demand and BMI. After controlling for the effort/reward imbalance or the demand/control model, the association between physical demand and working longer hours and BMI remained. CONCLUSION: Among men and women the were differing patterns of both exposures to psychosocial working conditions and associations with BMI. Among men, working long hours was positively associated with higher BMI and this association was partly independent of job stress. Among men physical demand was negatively associated with BMI and this association was independent of job stress.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Job control, job demands, or social class? The impact of working conditions on the relation between social class and health.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to investigate (1) how much of the association between health and social class is accounted by psychosocial working conditions, and (2) whether health is related to working conditions after controlling for social class. METHODS: The data derive from the surveys of the Helsinki health study, collected in 2000, 2001, and 2002 from 40-60 year old employees working for the City of Helsinki (n=8970, response rate 67%). The study measured occupation based social class and Karasek's demand-control model. The health outcomes were self rated health as less than good and limiting longstanding illness. Age adjusted prevalence percentages and fitted logistic regression models were calculated. RESULTS: The individual effects of social class and psychosocial working conditions on self rated health and limiting longstanding illness were strong among both men and women. The relation between social class and both health outcomes considerably attenuated when job control was controlled for, but was reinforced when controlling for job demands. Controlling for both job control and job demands attenuated the relation between social class and self rated health and limiting longstanding illness among women, however, was reinforced among men. CONCLUSIONS: A substantial part of the relation between social class and health could be attributed to job control, however, job demands reinforced the relation. Although the effect of social class is mediated by psychosocial working conditions, both social class and working conditions were related to health after mutual adjustments.

Adult↗

PubMed1982

[Studies on the cervicobrachial disorder among cash register operators. Part 1. Changes of characteristics of patients after improvement of working conditions].

Occupational cervicobrachial disorders (OCD) among cash register operators have become an important problem since 1969. Some improvements of working conditions, such as, shortened operating time, adoption of worker rotation system and change of mechanical registers with heavy keytouches to electronic ones with light keytouches, were introduced in 1973-1974 at supermarkets at which the authors engaged in health care activities for the prevention of the disorder. Analysis was made for characteristics of 120 cash register operators of these supermarkets suffering from OCD during the period from 1972 to 1978, with special concern for differences before and after the improvement of working conditions. The subjects were divided into three groups by the year of their first consultation, A: 1972-1973, B: 1974 and C: 1975-1976. Patients of group A had engaged in cash register operation under the working conditions before improvements, and those of group C had engaged after improvements of working conditions. The authors observed that the incidence of the disorder among group C were less than that of group A, but the proportion of severe cases to all the patients were not changed. In group C more cases with chronic onset were observed than among the other two groups, and those patients with chronic onset took longer period for recovery compared with the other patients. In patients of group C compared with those of group A fewer complaints and muscle tenderness in the hands and fingers were noticed, and more cases with lowered back strength and cinesalgia of the neck were observed. The reasons for this were considered to be that the improvement of working conditions reduced the loads to the hands, but not much reduced the loads to the neck and the back.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Strenuous working conditions and birthweight, Norway 1989.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether strenuous working conditions in pregnancy are associated with reduced birthweight. METHOD: Cross-sectional, population based study. Retrospective data collection by questionnaire to parturients in all maternity wards in Norway 16.10-26.11.89, completed before discharge from hospital, with response rate 87.2%. The study population consists of the 5388 women with singleton births, of whom 3321 were in paid work beyond the third month of pregnancy. Main outcome measures are prevalence of birthweight <2500 grams (LBW) and mean birthweight. RESULTS: Strenuous working conditions increased risk of LBW, but only for nullipara, particularly non-smoking nullipara. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals for non-smoking nullipara, adjusted for age, education and income, were 0.3 (0.1,0.9) for influence on work pace, 2.8 (1.2,6.5) for exposure to heavy lifting and 2.2 (0.8,5.8) for twisting/bending. Four groups of occupations were defined according to exposure, solely based on reports from mothers with non-LBW children in order to avoid recall bias. Prevalence of LBW increased from 0.8% in the least exposed to 8.3% in the most exposed group. (Test for trend: p<0.05, after adjustment for age, education and income.) Strenuous working conditions had no independent effect on mean birthweight after adjustment for age, education, income and smoking. CONCLUSION: Strenuous work increased the risk of LBW in nulliparae, particularly in non-smokers. Lack of influence on work pace was the strongest risk factor. The preventive effect of job modification in pregnancy may parallel smoking cessation.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

[Work conditions and health status of specialist meteorologists working with weather charts].

The contributors present a generalized description of the labour conditions' hygienic assessment and state of health of the communication service technicians and weather forecasters engaged in the State meteorology service centres in the northern and southern regions of the country. The unfavourable labour conditions' impact on the health state is revealed depending on the specificity of the weather-chart makers' working conditions, which lead to morbidity with temporary disability and occupational skin and upper respiratory tract diseases. A complex of tested measures is proposed for the improvement of the working conditions in question.

Absenteeism↗

PubMed1994

Women, work, and well-being: the importance of work conditions.

This study investigates the role of work conditions in mediating the effect of employment status on married women's psychological well-being. Employed wives and full-time homemakers are compared on characteristics of their daily work activities and the consequences of these work conditions for psychological well-being. Using data from a national survey of employed wives and homemakers, I find that full-time housework involves more autonomy, more interruptions, greater physical effort, more routine, fewer time pressures, and less responsibility for matters outside one's control than paid work. Differences in work activities between employed wives and homemakers also have direct implications for well-being. Two of the dimensions examined--the extent to which the worker is responsible for things outside her control, and the amount of routine entailed--are associated with greater depressive symptoms among women, regardless of work status. It appears that, as compared to employed wives, full-time homemakers benefit from having less responsibility for things outside their control. Employed wives appear to benefit from having less routinized work than homemakers. As a result of the different configurations of their work characteristics, employed wives and homemakers experience on average similar levels of depressive symptoms.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1997

Headache in Sweden: the importance of working conditions.

Headache is a common health problem that causes individual suffering as well as public expense. Because epidemiological studies have shown that headache is most prevalent among persons younger than 55 years, the influence of working conditions is of interest. In this study, we examined the importance of working conditions as a risk factor for frequent headache among the general Swedish population. Data from the Swedish Survey of Living Conditions for the 2-year period, 1988 and 1989, were used. In this survey, a probability sample of the Swedish population aged 16 years and older was interviewed. Frequent headache was defined as a positive answer to the question, "Have you (during the last 2 weeks) had recurrent headache or migraine?" Work stress was studied for two indices: physical work stress and mental work stress. The physical work stress index contained measurements of seven working conditions, and the mental work stress index contained measurements of three working conditions. The proportion of persons who reported frequent headache was greater among women than men, and frequent headache was most common in the age group 25 to 44 years. The logistic regression analyses showed that both physical and mental work stress were strongly associated with frequent headache among both men and women even after controlling for potential confounders. The associations between work stress and frequent headache may be dose-dependent. Heavy mental work stress was most strongly associated with frequent headache among men (odds ratio 3.03 [1.92 to 4.78]) while heavy physical work stress was most strongly associated with frequent headache among women (odds ratio 3.48 [1.13 to 10.65]). Improved working conditions could be one way of preventing headache, thereby decreasing individual suffering and employer as well as public expense.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1995

[Work satisfaction and working conditions of the nursing staff as the basis of internal interventions].

Satisfaction and working conditions of nursing staff as a basis for internal interventions Can analyzing the working situation of nursing staff by means of a questionnaire contribute to improving working conditions and thus reduce fluctuation and increase work-satisfaction? This was the basic question of this investigation and aimed at creating an instrument that could help work out existing resources and strategies for possible interventions. Therefore, an anonymous questionnaire containing 114 questions concerning the current situation was presented to the nursing staff in two departments of internal medicine and one surgical department of a university hospital in southern Germany in April 1993. Analysis of the data of the different working fields (ordinary/intensive care, clinics) showed individual differences regarding resources and possible interventions. Furthermore, the assumption could be confirmed that by means of such a project the nursing management gains specific starting points for the preparation of change. The prospects of improving working conditions seem quite good, as these findings are based upon the statements of the staff concerned. It has to be emphasized that the nursing staff were able to identify themselves with the conclusions when the results were presented to them.

Hospitals, General↗

PubMed1997

Young doctors' health--I. How do working conditions affect attitudes, health and performance?

Long hours and other difficult working conditions are thought to affect the health of young doctors, but there has been little evidence to support these assertions. Data are presented from a class cohort of junior doctors in the U.K. showing the relationships between working conditions, health and performance. Long hours appear to have short-term consequences in terms of the doctors feeling unwell and reporting poor performance, as measured by the somatic and social dysfunction scales of the General Health Questionnaire, but there are no demonstrated long-term health consequences. Instead, a number of working conditions, number of emergency admissions, number of deaths on the ward and the number of minor menial tasks contribute to a perception of being overwhelmed, as revealed by factor analysis of the Attitudes to Work questionnaire. This factor correlates significantly with a range of long-term physical and mental health measures as well as measure of work performance.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Working conditions and health in hairdressing salons.

The purpose of the study was to assess the working conditions in hairdressing salons and the influence of work factors on the workers' health. Twenty randomly sampled hairdressing salons in the Helsinki, Finland, metropolitan area were selected for the study. The study was performed during winter 1994-1995; it included a survey of the hairdressing chemicals in use, the measurement of physical and chemical working conditions, and a self-administered questionnaire of the work environment and health of the workers. The air temperature varied between 16-25 degrees C, air velocity 0.02-0.3 m/s, and relative humidity, 18-42 percent. The total dust concentration varied between 66-133 micrograms/m3. The concentration of volatile organic compounds was 84-465 micrograms/m3 and the peaks rose to 25-45 mg/m3. The highest concentration of ammonia detected was 3.5 mg/m3. The long-term concentrations of thioglycolates and persulfates were at their lowest below the detection limit, and at their highest 1.8 micrograms/m3 for thioglycolates and 4.7 micrograms/m3 for persulfates, respectively, and the peaks of persulfates, 30 micrograms/m3. Hairdressing chemicals, awkward work postures, and repetitive movements were the most frequent causes of discomfort and for some had caused a work-related disease. Good general ventilation decreased the health complaints caused by hairdressing chemicals, but caused discomfort as a result of drafts. On average, the physical and chemical working conditions in the hairdressing salons were satisfactory compared with the Finnish criterion for indoor climate. However, the frequent high peak concentrations of chemicals during dyeing, bleaching, permanenting, and aerosol spraying still pose a significant health problem. Although effective general ventilation alleviated the effects of the air pollutants, it could not completely solve the problem. Therefore, local exhaust ventilation is recommended at the mixing places for hairdressing chemicals and wherever they are applied to the hair. According to our results, already increasing the air exchange rate up to 5 to 7 times per hour during the high exposure jobs would improve the situation.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Work conditions and mental health among prison staff in France.

OBJECTIVES: A cross-sectional epidemiologic survey was conducted among prison staff in France to investigate the relationships between work conditions and mental health. METHODS: The sample included men and women 20 to 64 years of age belonging to all categories of prison personnel (prison guards, administrative staff, socioeducational workers, technicians, health care workers, and managers). A postal self-administered questionnaire was used to assess sociodemographic factors, work conditions, and physical and mental disorders. Multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the effects of work conditions and social relationships on the mental health of prison staff. RESULTS: The results presented in this report only concern depressive symptomatology (measured by the French version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale), anxiety (measured by the state version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory), and sleep disorders. The percentage of mental disorders was higher among prison staff than that determined for other occupational samples. Guards comprised the prison staff least affected by these symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The results show that, in our sample, the factors concerning the subjective evaluation of work conditions and social support were more closely related to mental disorders than work conditions. In addition, seniority was associated with depressive symptoms and anxiety among the men.

Adult↗

PubMed1987

Stressful work conditions and diastolic blood pressure among blue collar factory workers.

The authors examined the relationships between stressful work conditions and diastolic blood pressure among blue collar men employed in similar occupational settings. The study population consisted of 288 male, hourly workers, aged 40-63 years, employed for a minimum of 10 years at one of two plants in the metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area in January 1980. Blood pressure was assessed by the random zero muddler method by trained nurses at screenings between March 1981 and August 1982; 47 men who received pharmacologic treatment for previously diagnosed hypertension were excluded from the analyses. Multiple regression analyses showed that ratings of six (of 15) stressful work conditions as well as overall job dissatisfaction were significant predictors of diastolic blood pressure, controlling for age, body mass index, alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking habits, family history of hypertension, and severe noise-induced hearing loss. Men with elevated diastolic blood pressure reported having little opportunity for promotion and for participating in decisions at work, an uncertain job future, unsupportive coworkers and foreman, difficulties communicating with others, and overall dissatisfaction with the job. Additional stepwise multiple regression analyses showed that overall job satisfaction was related to low diastolic pressure among men from the plant rated as having overall good work conditions. These results are noteworthy because they support the importance of stressful work conditions and psychological reactions to those conditions in understanding the epidemiology of hypertension.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Significance of working conditions on burnout in anesthetists.

BACKGROUND: The influence of working conditions on the development of burnout syndrome was assessed in anesthetists working at a university hospital. METHODS: Self-reporting questionnaires were used to assess physical health and emotional well-being (Health and Stress Profile), burnout syndrome (Maslach Burnout Inventory) and working conditions (Instrument for Stress-Oriented Task Analysis) in anesthetists. RESULTS: Twenty-three anesthetists (25.8%) appeared to be at risk for burnout, and three anesthetists (3.4%) had already developed full-blown burnout syndrome. Anesthetists at risk for burnout more frequently suffered from limited complexity of work (P=0.001), lacking individual time control (P=0.004), lack of participation possibilities (P=0.012), and had more physical complaints (P=0.017) and greater job dissatisfaction (P=0.002) than did their colleagues with no burnout symptoms. CONCLUSION: Job conditions providing little opportunity to influence work pace and participation contribute to the development of burnout syndrome. Communication and contact with colleagues appear to be an important preventive regulative.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Relationships of working conditions and individual characteristics to occupational injuries: a case-control study in coal miners.

This study assessed the relationship of age, poor perception of working condition, poor safety environment, poor management and supervision, risk-taking behavior, emotional instability, negative job involvement, job dissatisfaction, job stress, and poor safety performance of workers to occupational injuries. This case-control study was conducted on 202 male coal miners with at least one occupational injury during a five-year period and 202 male controls with no occupational injury, matched on the job. A standardized questionnaire administered by individual interviewers was used. Data were analysed by the logistic regression method. For all workers combined, the factors with significant adjusted odds ratios (ORs) found were: 30-45 and >45 yr age groups (OR vs. <30 yr age group: 1.80, 95% CI 1.02-3.17 and 2.59, 1.38-4.85 respectively), poor perception of working conditions (1.61, CI 1.00-3.18), emotional instability (2.33, 1.04-5.22), job stress (1.83, 1.00-3.46) and poor safety performance of workers (3.10, 1.45-6.63). No significant interaction was found between these risk factors and the job. It was concluded that older age, poor perception of work conditions, poor work environment, and human behavioral factors played significant roles in occupational injuries. This information would help in implementing preventive programs to improve working conditions and management quality and to help the workers to develop positive psychological traits, but workers with negative traits such as emotional instability and older workers should be employed in less demanding jobs.

Accidents, Occupational↗

PubMed1996

[The effect of work-related stress with change of working conditions for workers with alcohol drinking habit and liver disorder].

To evaluate the relationship between working conditions and workers' health, particularly the effect of work-related stress with change of working conditions for those with alcohol drinking habit and liver disorder, we analyzed physiological examination data and a questionnaire survey including the Japanese version of Karasek's Job Content Questionnaires (JCQ) on work-related stress, working hours, sleeping hours, alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking among male workers of a car manufacturing plant, who engaged in car sales work temporarily and then returned to manufacturing work. In the physiological examination data, the values of body mass index (BMI), GOT, GPT, gamma-GTP, TG and T-CHO rose and the prevalence of obesity and liver disorder increased during the term of car sales work. Comparing the term of car sales work with the term of car manufacturing work, the number of habitual drinkers and heavy smokers increased during the former and decreased during the latter. Increased alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking were also noted during the term of car sales work. Logistic regression analysis showed that the odds ratio of decreasing 'decision latitude (DL)' as work-related stress was statistically significant for increased alcohol consumption. The increased alcohol consumption probably contributing to the prevalence of liver disorder was assumed to be associated with work-related stress due to change of work conditions. Workers who showed liver disorder strongly complained of work-related stress, and it was assumed that the work-related stress was related to liver disorder. Longitudinal observations which take into account work-related stress, alcohol drinking habit and liver disorder must be well planned and personal traits of work-related stress always be taken into consideration.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

[The importance of work conditions in the textile industry to worker absenteeism].

A study was performed in the "Belgrade Wool Co." as a retrospective epidemiological investigation, for a three-year period (1985-1987), on a sample of 134 blue-collar female workers. The following statistically significant facts were established: in favourable working conditions (sewing department) the older workers (above the age of 35 years) were absent from work because of illness longer than the younger workers; the number of the younger workers (age 35 years or under) with sick absences increased as working conditions worsened (wool-mills compared to sewing departments). Respiratory diseases made the most frequent cause of absence from work. Harder working conditions influenced the morbidity structure as cause of absenteeism resulting in the rise of prevalence of mental disorders among the younger workers, and of locomotor and circulatory diseases among the older ones. The younger workers showed a rising trend in the severity and frequency of injuries as causes of absence from work, which correlated with the degree of deterioration of working conditions. Finally, under extremely hard working conditions (wool-mills) the rate of occupationally induced injuries among the younger workers was as much as three times higher than among the older ones, and the duration of sick absences was longer.

Absenteeism↗

PubMed2000

Monitoring psychosocial stress at work: development of the Psychosocial Working Conditions Questionnaire.

Many studies on the impact of psychosocial working conditions on health prove that psychosocial stress at work is an important risk factor endangering workers' health. Thus it should be constantly monitored like other work hazards. The paper presents a newly developed instrument for stress monitoring called the Psychosocial Working Conditions Questionnaire (PWC). Its structure is based on Robert Karasek's model of job stress (Karasek, 1979; Karasek & Theorell, 1990). It consists of 3 main scales Job Demands, Job Control, Social Support and 2 additional scales adapted from the Occupational Stress Questionnaire (Elo, Leppanen, Lindstrom, & Ropponen, 1992), Well-Being and Desired Changes. The study of 8 occupational groups (bank and insurance specialists, middle medical personnel, construction workers, shop assistants, government and self-government administration officers, computer scientists, public transport drivers, teachers, N = 3,669) indicates that PWC has satisfactory psychometrics parameters. Norms for the 8 groups were developed.

Female↗