Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

  • Volume 35
  • /
  • Pages.21.1-21.11
  • /
  • 2023
  • /
  • 1225-3618(pISSN)
  • /
  • 2052-4374(eISSN)
The Korean Society of Occupational & Environmental Medicine (대한직업환경의학회)
권호 표지
DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

Association between irregular working hours and work-related musculoskeletal pain: results from the 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey

  • Munyoung Yang (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea) ;
  • Jun-Pyo Myong (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea) ;
  • Jongin Lee (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea) ;
  • Min Young Park (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea) ;
  • Mo-Yeol Kang (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea)
  • Received : 2023.03.29
  • Accepted : 2023.06.21
  • Published : 2023.12.31
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

Background: Recently, irregular working hours have become controversial issues in Korea. The health impact of irregular working hours on the work-related musculoskeletal pain (MSP) is scarcely researched before. We sought to investigate the association between irregular working hours and work-related MSP among South Korean workers. Methods: This study used data from the sixth Korean Working Conditions Survey in 2020. The prevalence of work-related MSP was analyzed using the χ2 test. A multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the association between irregular working hours and work-related MSP. We conducted stratified analysis by gender, weekly working hours, and workers' control over their working hours. We calculated the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of work-related MSP for irregular working hours combined with weekly working hours. Results: The OR for work-related MSP was significantly higher in the population with irregular working hours than in the population with regular working hours (OR: 1.43, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.29-1.58). Irregular and long (> 52 hours/week) working hours have the highest risk of work-related MSP in both genders (in men, OR: 3.48 [95% CI: 2.53-4.78]; in women, OR: 2.41 [95% CI: 1.46-4.00]). Conclusions: Irregular working hours were associated with work-related MSP in Korea. The association was magnified with long working hours. Reform of the Korean Labor Standards Act leading to increase irregular working hours may induce adverse health outcome.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

The authors appreciate the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute for providing the raw data from the 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey.

References

  1. Park J, Kim Y, Han B. Long working hours in Korea: based on the 2014 Korean Working Conditions Survey. Saf Health Work 2017;8(4):343-6.
  2. Hyojun K, Jooho J, Minhyo J. A study on the policy-change process of the working hour reduction act: focusing on the introduction of the 52-hour workweek. Korean Public Adm Q 2021;33(2):255-82.
  3. Arlinghaus A, Bohle P, Iskra-Golec I, Jansen N, Jay S, Rotenberg L. Working Time Society consensus statements: evidence-based effects of shift work and non-standard working hours on workers, family and community. Ind Health 2019;57(2):184-200.
  4. Costa G, Sartori S, Akerstedt T. Influence of flexibility and variability of working hours on health and wellbeing. Chronobiol Int 2006;23(6):1125-37.
  5. Bohle P, Willaby H, Quinlan M, McNamara M. Flexible work in call centres: working hours, work-life conflict & health. Appl Ergon 2011;42(2):219-24.
  6. Henly JR, Lambert SJ. Unpredictable work timing in retail jobs: implications for employee work-life conflict. Ind Labor Relat Rev 2014;67(3):986-1016.
  7. Korean Statistical Information Service. Status of occupational diseases. https://kosis.kr/statHtml/statHtml.do?orgId=118&tblId=DT_11806_N037&vw_cd=MT_ZTITLE&list_id=118_11806_cie647&scrId=&seqNo=&lang_mode=ko&obj_var_id=&itm_id=&conn_path=MT_ZTITLE&path=%252FstatisticsList%252FstatisticsListIndex.do" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink. Updated 2023. Accessed March 28, 2023.
  8. World Health Organization. Musculoskeletal health. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/musculoskeletal-conditions. Updated 2022. Accessed March 28, 2023.
  9. Amiri S. Longer working hours and musculoskeletal pain: a meta-analysis. Int J Occup Saf Ergon 2023;29(1):1-16.
  10. Widanarko B, Legg S, Devereux J, Stevenson M. The combined effect of physical, psychosocial/organisational and/or environmental risk factors on the presence of work-related musculoskeletal symptoms and its consequences. Appl Ergon 2014;45(6):1610-21.
  11. Caruso CC, Waters TR. A review of work schedule issues and musculoskeletal disorders with an emphasis on the healthcare sector. Ind Health 2008;46(6):523-34.
  12. Moon JS, Bang HW, Cho YH, Kim JH, Won JU, Kim HK, et al. The effect of work regularity on musculoskeletal pain of the shift workers. J Korean Soc Occup Environ Hyg 2019;29(4):517-29.
  13. Park S, Lee JH. Precarious employment and increased incidence of musculoskeletal pain among wage workers in Korea: a cross-sectional study. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2021;18(12):6299.
  14. Lee HE, Kim MH, Choi M, Kim HR, Kawachi I. Variability in daily or weekly working hours and self-reported mental health problems in Korea, Korean Working Condition Survey, 2017. Arch Public Health 2021;79(1):25.
  15. Lee WT, Lim SS, Kim J, Yun S, Yoon JH, Won JU. Work schedule irregularity and the risk of work-related injury among Korean manual workers. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020;17(20):7617.
  16. Kim YS, Rhee KY, Oh MJ, Park J. The validity and reliability of the second Korean Working Conditions Survey. Saf Health Work 2013;4(2):111-6.
  17. Lee JG, Kim GH, Jung SW, Kim SW, Lee JH, Lee KJ. The association between long working hours and work-related musculoskeletal symptoms of Korean wage workers: data from the fourth Korean Working Conditions Survey (a cross-sectional study). Ann Occup Environ Med 2018;30(1):67.
  18. Garza JL, Ferguson JM, Dugan AG, Decker RE, Laguerre RA, Suleiman AO, et al. Investigating the relationship between working time characteristics on musculoskeletal symptoms: a cross sectional study. Arch Environ Occup Health 2022;77(2):141-8.
  19. National Research Council (US); Institute of Medicine (US) Panel on Musculoskeletal Disorders and the Workplace. Musculoskeletal Disorders and the Workplace: Low Back and Upper Extremities. Washington, D.C., USA: National Academies Press; 2001.
  20. Oakman J, Neupane S, Kyronlahti S, Nygard CH, Lambert K. Musculoskeletal pain trajectories of employees working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 2022;95(9):1891-901.
  21. Park S, Lee J, Lee JH. Insufficient rest breaks at workplace and musculoskeletal disorders among Korean kitchen workers. Saf Health Work 2021;12(2):225-9.
  22. Lang J, Ochsmann E, Kraus T, Lang JW. Psychosocial work stressors as antecedents of musculoskeletal problems: a systematic review and meta-analysis of stability-adjusted longitudinal studies. Soc Sci Med 2012;75(7):1163-74.
  23. Hammig O, Knecht M, Laubli T, Bauer GF. Work-life conflict and musculoskeletal disorders: a cross-sectional study of an unexplored association. BMC Musculoskelet Disord 2011;12(1):60.
  24. Kim J, Kim H, Kim N, Nam J. Structural Identification of College Graduate Female Youth Labor Market and Policy Tasks. Seoul, Korea: Korean Women's Development Institute; 2007.
  25. Oh Y, Kim KS. Trajectories and types of youth labor market transition: focusing on differences by gender and educational level. Q J Labor Policy 2019;19(3):1-35.
  26. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Average annual hours actually worked per worker. https://stats.oecd.org/index.aspx?DataSetCode=ANHRS. Updated 2023. Accessed April 29, 2023.