• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.108-113
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• 2021

Background: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between changes in employment status and new-onset depressive symptoms through a one-year follow-up of permanent waged workers. Methods: We analyzed the open-source data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study. Using the 2017 data, we selected 2,314 permanent waged workers aged 19 to 59 years without depressive symptoms as a base group. The final analysis targeted 2,073 workers who were followed up in 2018. In 2018, there were five categories of employment status for workers who were followed up: permanent, precarious, unemployed, self-employed, and economically inactive. Multiple logistic regression was used to determine the association between employment status change and new-onset depressive symptoms. Results: Adjusted multiple logistic regression analysis showed that among male workers, workers who went from permanent status to being unemployed (odds ratio: 4.50, 95% confidence interval: 1.19 to 17.06) and from permanent status to being precarious workers (odds ratio: 3.15, 95% confidence interval: 1.30 to 7.65) had significantly high levels of new-onset depressive symptoms compared with those who retained their permanent employment status. There were no significant increases in new-onset depressive symptoms of male workers who went from permanent status to being self-employed or economically inactive. On the other hand, no significant differences were found among female workers. Conclusion: Our study suggests that the change of employment status to precarious workers or unemployment can cause new-onset depressive symptoms in male permanent waged workers.

• East Asian Economic Review
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.29-54
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• 2014

The purpose of this research is to identify the relation between OFDI (Outward Foreign Direct Investment) and wage inequality. In order to analyze various effects of OFDI on wages depending on the types of workers, the research classified laborers into four categories: permanent/skilled worker, permanent/unskilled worker, temporary/skilled worker, and temporary/unskilled worker. With controlling wage-determining factors such as education, labor union, individual fixed-effect, and industry-level effect, this paper examines whether OFDI attributes to the wage inequality among each type of workers. Moreover, this study also analyzes possible effects on wages that could vary according to the different characteristics of investments by classifying OFDI into two groups: OECD and non-OECD. The results reveal that OFDI makes certain differences according to skill-intensity and contract type in terms of influences on wages. It also shows that the effect of OFDI on wages is more subject to contract type than to skill-intensity. The classification of OFDI into OECD and non-OECD proves that effects on wages can vary by characteristics of the subject of investment.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.77-102
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• 2007

This paper compares income and consumption for their relative effectiveness in measuring inequality. Although income inequality has received more attention in the literature, the permanent income hypothesis links consumption to welfare more directly than income. To the extent economic agents smooth their consumptions, consumption inequality is a better indicator for an economy's welfare inequality, and it is especially so when income volatility is high. The empirical analysis in this paper indicates that the income and consumption patterns among the Korean wage/salary worker households are quite consistent with the permanent income hypothesis. Further, it is found that consumption inequality tends to be lower than income inequality, and more importantly, that the two inequalities do not always vary in the same direction. These results call for stronger emphasis on consumption inequality in inequality literature.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.295-302
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• 2023

Background: Fisheries and aquaculture are statistically acknowledged to be among the most dangerous occupations. Yet, industrial safety and health precautions against occupational accidents within the sector are not sufficiently implemented in many parts of the world. The present study aims to provide a quantified overview of work accident statistics in the Turkish fisheries and aquaculture industry. Methods: This article presents an overview of reported injuries and fatalities in the Turkish fisheries and aquaculture industries from 2006 to 2020. Incident, permanent incapacity, and fatality rates were calculated, and the difference between fisheries and aquaculture was statistically examined. Results: The overall incident, permanent incapacity, and fatality rates were 449.4, 4.7, and 5.7 per 100,000 worker years, respectively, over the 15-year period. With these fatality rates, fisheries and aquaculture are two of the industries with the highest fatality rates among comparable industries in Turkey. Incident rates in fisheries and aquaculture indicated that aquaculture work is more dangerous and risky. The data set includes 25 fatalities and 22 permanent incapacity cases over 15 years and shows an increase in fatality rates and occupational accidents in the last 8 years. Conclusion: present study showed that the quality of data and reporting in the Turkish fisheries and aquaculture industries including occupational illnesses, must be improved in order to be more preventative and to develop efficient safety management in the sector. Incentives for providing thorough data on occupational incidents must be enhanced to improve occupational safety awareness in Turkish fisheries and aquaculture.

• Economic Analysis
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.1-29
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• 2019

This paper examines the impact of a dual labor market structure on labor productivity using unbalanced panel data from 29 OECD member countries between 1990 and 2015. By applying a variety of regression models on the panel data (e.g., a pooled regression, a fixed effects model and a GMM), we explore how changes in worker-type composition among temporary, permanent and self-employed workers contribute to productivity growth. While it appears that our results differ slightly, depending on the econometric models, overall an increase in the share of permanent workers leads to a relatively higher increase in productivity growth. On the other hand, it is also seen that the effects of the share of temporary workers on labor productivity are considerably lower than that of permanent and self-employed workers. To sum it up, our findings indicate that an increase in temporary workers could have an adverse effect on labor productivity.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.1231-1242
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• 2020

The Kori Unit 1 will be decommissioned after a permanent shutdown in June 2017. South Korea has a 0.1 mSv/yr exposure limit standard for limited or unlimited site release. This is South Korea's first commercial NPP; therefore, if the containment building is reused as a memorial hall, it will contribute to the improvement of public understanding and enhance the public's acceptance of NPPs. Also, existing Kori Unit 1 nuclear power plant manpower resources can be reused after decommissioning and resident staff and memorial hall visitors can activate nearby commercial areas. Therefore, such a reuse scenario may also prevent an economic recession. The exposure dose was calculated using the following scenarios: worker in the containment building, visitor in the containment building, and worker in buildings other than the containment building. The exposure dose in the buildings was calculated by the RESRAD-BUILD developed by the Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The preliminary exposure dose and derived concentration guideline level (DCGL) were derived.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.81-117
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• 2011

This study examined how firms responded to the articles regarding the prohibition or correction of discrimination against fixed-term workers in the 'fixed-term worker protection law', which has been effective since July of 2007 in Korea. Data used cone from the Korean Workplace Survey, and a difference-in-differences method was employed for the identification of the causal effect, noting that the 'discrimination prohibition law' has been applied to firms over stages based on their sizes. The empirical results show no strong evidence that the law played a positive role in reducing differentials between permanent workers and fixed-term workers in the areas of wage and various employee benefits, including the provision of severance pay, annual leave, and 4 major social insurances for fixed-term workers. A more thorough future analysis on the causes of the insignificant impact of the law in some employee welfare benefits, along with supplemental policies, is needed to have the law achieve the desired goal of removing discrimination at the workplace.

• 한국사회정책
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.203-225
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• 2016

The permanent disability benefit(PDB) system whose purpose lies in helping affected workers with their self-realization through compensating them for their work-related injury or disease and facilitating their timely return to work is very important in terms of social welfare. Actually, the portions of PDB's in all WCI expenditures have been on the sharp increase. In spite of its positive aspects like this, however, an excessive amount of PDB's may have negative impacts on the affected workers' will to work or return to work, and increasing trends in the amount of PDB's payable in annuity will remain in an aging or aged society a potentially risky factor posing a threat to the soundness of WCI budgets. In this respect, the author attempted herein to identify the long-term reality of trends in the number of claimants entitled to PDB's and the amount of PDB's payable to them through making the long-term budget projections of PDB's; address problems with PDB's payable in annuity, which are or will potentially be one of the gravest burdens in securing the soundness of WCI budgets; and discuss how to optimize the amount of PDB's through studying & analyzing overseas cases and income replacement rates and what kinds of improvements are thinkable. It's recommended to reduce the absolute amount of benefits payable in annuity in a phased way considering claimants' life-cycle instead of sticking to the current system, which takes the form of lifelong pension plan.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.249-261
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• 2020

Background: Hearing loss is one of the most prevalent worker health conditions worldwide. Although the effect of noise exposure on hearing is well researched, other workplace exposures may account for significant hearing loss. The aim of this review was to determine whether occupational hand-arm vibration exposure through use of power or pneumatic tools, independent of noise exposure, is associated with permanent hearing loss. Do workers suffer from hand-arm vibratione-induced hearing loss? Methods: Peer-reviewed articles published in English between 1981 and 2020 were identified through five online databases with five search keywords. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines, including online database search methodology, study selection, article exclusion, and assessment of potential study design confounders and biases, were followed. Results: Database searches retrieved 697 articles. Fifteen articles that reported 17 studies met the criteria for review. All but two studies revealed statistically significant associations between occupational exposure to hand-arm vibration and hearing loss. The majority of the study results revealed associations between hand-arm vibration and hearing loss, independent of potential age and noise confounders. Conclusion: Few studies have examined the association between occupational exposure to hand-arm vibration and hearing loss. Dose response data were limited as only one study measured vibration intensity and duration. Although the majority of studies identified statistically significant associations, causal relationships could not be determined. Further research using standardized and uniform measurement protocols is needed to confirm whether the association between occupational exposure to hand-arm vibration and permanent hearing loss is causal and the mechanism(s).

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.135-142
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• 2015

This paper analyzed the effects of changes in temporary workers on firm performances, and the effects of different workforce portions of business functions on corporate performances, respectively, using Korean venture business survey conduected in 2013. Results show that the performance of venture businesses decreases significantly, as the portion of temporary workers increases, which is more pronounced in small companies than in medium companies. In addition, the portions of workforce for administration, R&D, production, and sales don't have uniform effect on firm performance, where medium companies are affected significantly by the portions of production and sales, while small companies do not show significant relationship. This analysis implies that innovative firms, based on knowledge workers, need to use caution when they plan to increase temporary workers, which may lead to lower performance. However, we need further research for the basic causes of the possible lower performance.