• Industry Promotion Research
• /
• v.5 no.3
• /
• pp.1-10
• /
• 2020

The purpose of this study is to analyze the working hours of Korean workers in terms of occupation, employment contract period, employment type, final education level based on the first(2006), second(2010), third(2011), fourth(2014) Korean Working Conditions Survey(KWCS) results. Also KWCS was compared to European Working Conditions Survey(EWCS). It is found that weekly working hours were decreasing over the years since mid 2000 but weekly working hours of Korean were still longer than those of Europeans. It is also found that service workers and sales workers worked longer hours than specialists, that private sector worked longer hours than public and non-profit organization, and that the less educated worked longer hours than the more educated.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.4 no.2
• /
• pp.111-116
• /
• 2013

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of the Second Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS), focusing on its validity and reliability. Methods: The external validity was evaluated by the assessment of sampling procedures and the response rate, in order to investigate the representativeness of the sample. The content validity was evaluated by the assessment of the development of the questionnaire, and the consistency of questions for the selected construct. The test-retest method was used to evaluate the reliability by means of a phone call survey of 30% of the respondents, who were randomly selected. The respondents' satisfaction regarding the survey procedures and interview time were analyzed to evaluate the quality of survey data. Results: The external validity was assured by an acceptable sampling procedure, rigid multi-stage stratified cluster random sampling. The content validity was also guaranteed by a reasonable procedure for the development of the questionnaire with a pretest. The internal consistency of the questions for work autonomy was maintained, with 0.738 of Cronbach's alpha. The response rate of 36% was lower than that of the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), with a contact rate of 66%, compared to 76% for the EWCS. The matching rates of the five retested questions were more than 98% reliable. Conclusion: The quality of the second KWCS was assured by the high external and content validity and reliability. The rigid sampling procedure and development of the questionnaire contributed to quality assurance. The high level of reliability may be guaranteed by the sophisticated field survey procedures and the development of a technical manual for interviewers. The technical strategies for a high response rate should be developed for future surveys.

• International Commerce and Information Review
• /
• v.8 no.4
• /
• pp.391-411
• /
• 2006

The present Study investigated on effect of working time and physical work environment on job satisfaction, and is based on a representative survey carried out in the 15 European Union Member States in 2,000 on behalf of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions by Infratest Burke Sozialforschung and a consortium of national fieldwork institutes. In the course of the survey, a total of 21,703 people drawn from the economically active populations in the 15 countries were questioned about their working time, overtime, weekend work, physical work environment, social support of supervisor and co-worker and job satisfaction. Regression analysis and subgroup analysis were employed to examine the hypotheses. It was found that weekend work, overtime and physical work environment associate negatively with job satisfaction. Social support of supervisor and co-worker moderated only relation between working time and job satisfaction. The results provide support for prior quantitative studies partly. Based on these significant research findings, theoretical implications were discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Data and Information Science Society
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.45-65
• /
• 2016

Global competition and unstable economic situation in recent years have brought in adverse working conditions such as proliferation of temporary or part-time workers and new shift system. In this study we use exploratory data analysis method to find the relationship between some of the important variables which are related to working hours in KWCS (Korean Working Conditions Survey) and EWCS (European Working Conditions Survey). Next, working hours are explored in terms of sex, employment type, occupation and industry using 2006, 2010, 2011, 2014 KWCS data as well as 2010 EWCS data. Lastly, respondents are divided into two groups of healthy and nonhealthy workers and their working hours are explored in terms of the same categories as above. Finally, simple regression analysis is used to find the effect of health on weekly working hours and adjustment of the effect of health on weekly working hours is made using multiple regression analysis with some other independent variable such as sex, age and employment type included in the model.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.175-184
• /
• 2016

Stress at work and in the family is a very common issue in our society that generates many health-related problems. During recent years, numerous studies have sought to define the term stress, raising many contradictions that various authors have studied. Other authors have attempted to establish some criteria, in subjective and not very quantitative ways, in an attempt to reduce and even to eliminate stressors and their effects at work and in the family context. The purpose of this study was to quantify so-called cushioning variables, such as control, social support, home/work life conciliation, and even sports and leisure activities, with the purpose of, as much as possible, reducing the negative effects of stress, which seriously affects the health of workers. The study employs data from the Fifth European Working Conditions Survey, in which nearly 44,000 interviewees from 34 countries in the European Union participated. We constructed a probabilistic model based on a Bayesian network, using variables from both the workplace and the family, the aforementioned cushioning variables, as well as the variable stress. If action is taken on the above variables, then the probabilities of suffering high levels of stress may be reduced. Such action may improve the quality of life of people at work and in the family.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.370-376
• /
• 2021

Backround: Working condition surveys are widely recognized as useful tools for monitoring the quality of working life and the improvements introduced by health and safety policy frameworks at the European and national level. The Italian Workers' Compensation Authority carried out a national survey (Insula) to investigate the employer's perceptions related to working conditions and their impact on health. Methods: The present study is based on the data collected from the Italian survey on health and safety at work (INSULA) conducted on a representative sample of the Italian workforce (n = 8,000). This focuses on the relationship between psychosocial risk factors and self-reported health using a set of logistic and linear regression models. Results: Working conditions such as managerial support, job satisfaction, and role act as protective factors on mental and physical health. On the contrary, workers' risk perceptions related to personal exposure to occupational safety and health risks, concern about health conditions, and work-related stress risk exposure determine a poorer state of health. Conclusions: This study highlights the link between working conditions and self-report health, and this aims to provide a contribution in the field of health at work. Findings show that working conditions must be object of specific preventive measures to improve the workers' health and well-being.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.12 no.1
• /
• pp.57-65
• /
• 2021

Background: The objective of this study was to elucidate the relationships musculoskeletal pains with combined vulnerability in terms of age, gender, and employment status Methods: The fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) in 2010 (43,816 participants aged 15 years and over) analyzed for European employees and the third Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS) in 2011 (50,032 participants aged 15 years and older) analyzed for Korean employees. In this study, three well known vulnerable factors to musculoskeletal pains (older age, female gender, and precarious employment status) were combined and defined as combined vulnerability. Associations of musculoskeletal pains with combined vulnerability were assessed with prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) estimated by Poisson regression models with robust estimates of variance. Results: The prevalences of musculoskeletal pains were lower but the absolute and relative differences between combined vulnerabilities were higher among Korean employees compared with the European employees. Furthermore, the increased risk of having musculoskeletal pains according to combined vulnerability was modestly explained by socioeconomic factors and exposure to ergonomic risk factors, especially in Republic of Korea. Conclusions: The results of this study showed that the labor market may be more unfavorable for female and elderly workers in Republic of Korea. Any prevention strategies to ward off musculoskeletal pains, therefore, should be found and implemented to mitigate or buffer against the most vulnerable work population, older, female, and precarious employment status, in Republic of Korea.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.10 no.2
• /
• pp.224-228
• /
• 2019

Background: European policymakers encourage individuals to become self-employed because it is a way to promote innovation and job creation. It can be assumed that health and well-being among the self-employed and managers in small-scale enterprises are particularly crucial in this enterprise group because the smallness of the enterprise makes its members vulnerable. Earlier studies have indicated that the self-employed have a high working pace and work for long and irregular hours, indicating that it can be difficult to stay at home because of sickness. The purpose of this study is to investigate the occurrence of sickness presenteeism among the self-employed in relation to the organizationally employed and to analyze whether any differences can be explained by higher work demands among the self-employed. Methods: The study is based on the fifth European survey on working conditions (2010) and includes the northwestern European countries in the survey. The questions cover a wide range of topics designed to meet the European Union's political needs. The main variables in this study are sickness presenteeism and several indicators of time demands. Results: The results show that the self-employed report a higher level of sickness presenteeism than the employed: 52.4 versus 43.6%. All indicators of time demands are significantly related to the risk for sickness presenteeism, also when controlling for background characteristics. Conclusion: The results confirm that the level of sickness presenteeism is higher among the self-employed and that high time demands are a major explanation to this.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.201-207
• /
• 2016

Background: Korean Working Conditions Surveys (KWCS), referencing European Working Conditions Surveys, have been conducted three times in order to survey working condition and develop work-related policies. However, we found three limitations for managing the collected KWCS data: (1) there was no computerized system for managing data; (2) statistical KWCS data were provided by limited one-way communication; and (3) the concept of a one-time provision of information was pursued. We suggest a web-based public service system that enables ordinary people to make greater use of the KWCS data, which can be managed constantly in the future. Methods: After considering data characteristics, we designed a database, which was able to have the result of all pairwise combinations with two extracted data to construct an analysis system. Using the data of the social network for each user, the tailored analysis system was developed. This system was developed with three methods: clustering and classification for building a social network, and an infographic method for improving readability through a friendly user interface. Results: We developed a database including one input entity consisting of the sociodemographic characteristics and one output entity consisting of working condition characteristics, such as working pattern and work satisfaction. A web-based public service system to provide tailored contents was completed. Conclusion: This study aimed to present a customized analysis system to use the KWCS data efficiently, provide a large amount of data in a form that can give users a better understanding, and lay the ground for helping researchers and policy makers understand the characteristics.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.14 no.4
• /
• pp.483-487
• /
• 2023

The objectives of the study were to explore the employment factors associated with long working hours, known as a risk factor for various health outcomes. The study relied on the national representative data of the 2013 French working conditions survey and a study sample of 23,378 full-time employees. Long working hours were defined by the threshold of 48 hours a week following the European Working Time Directive. The prevalence of long working hours was higher among men (13.5%) than among women (8.5%). Employees of the private sector, with permanent work contract, in small companies, and men in the services had a higher prevalence of exposure. This prevalence increased with educational and occupational levels. Our findings may help decision-makers to define preventive strategies. More research is needed to improve our knowledge of the employment factors associated with long working hours, as there may be strong differences between countries.