• Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
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• v.34
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• pp.13.1-13.11
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• 2022

Background: Work is an inseparable element of a person's life, and violence in the workplace has various effects on individual workers and companies. While most studies have focused on specific industries, very few studies have investigated the influence of workplace violence by co-workers. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the association between workplace violence and work-related depression/anxiety in various occupations by differentiating the perpetrators of violence as co-workers and clients. Methods: This study was conducted based on data from the 4th and 5th Korean Working Conditions Surveys (KWCS). The experience of workplace violence was classified in terms of the perpetrator: workplace violence by co-workers and that by clients. Work-related depression and anxiety were assessed using questions about health problems related to depression and anxiety and whether the problems were related to work. Descriptive statistics, χ² tests, and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed using the SPSS 26.0. Results: After adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics (age, education, income, subjective health status) and occupational characteristics (occupation, weekly working hours, type of employment, size of workplace, and shift work), male workers with experience of workplace violence by co-workers were found to be at a higher risk of work-related depression/anxiety (odds ratio [OR], 11.52; 95% confidence interval [CI], 8.65-15.36). The same was confirmed for female workers (OR, 10.89; 95% CI, 7.90-15.02). Conclusions: Employees who experienced workplace violence from co-workers were found to be more vulnerable to work-related depression/anxiety. Continuous contact between the victim and the perpetrator may occur, and the possibility of a secondary assault can frighten the victim. Appropriate prevention and intervention measures that focus on the perpetrators of violence are needed.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.1-34
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• 2002

This paper investigates the effects of hours reduction on growth, investment, and consumption as well as employment. We adopt the basic framework of the indivisibility of labor developed by Hansen (1985) and Rogerson (1988) and extend it by allowing heterogeneity of workers in productive efficiency. On the basis of monthly panel data constructed from Economically Active Population Surveys and Household Income and Expenditure Surveys, we estimate the value of productive efficiency parameter of newly hired workers relative to existing workers by considering differences between the two groups in unobservable as well as observable worker characteristics. Numerical simulation of steady states demonstrates that reduction of statutory weekly hours from 44 to 40 leads to a rise in employees by 4.9 percent. However, GNP, investment, and consumption are all reduced by 2.03 percent, which is attributed to reduction in the amount of effective labor input, which in turn comes from reduction of actual average hours and productivity differences between exiting and newly hired workers.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.101-108
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• 2018

Background: Work and work environment have a critical influence on adolescent workers' health. They are subjected to more risks than adults. The aim of this study is to examine psychological health outcomes in adolescent workers in the areas of depression, somatization, anxiety, hostility, and negative self-concept, and to investigate any related factors. Methods: This is a descriptive and cross-sectional study. Research samples were collected from adolescent workers between 15 and 18 years old attending a 1-day mandatory education course at vocational training centers, working 5 days per week in small enterprises. Data were collected using the following instruments: Brief Symptom Inventory, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and Descriptive Characteristics of Children's Assessment Form. Results: The investigation covers 837 young workers, of whom 675 were males and 162 were females. The majority of the families had low incomes (68.1%). Overall, 33.5% of the adolescents had been hospitalized because of health problems. Their average weekly working hours were $78.1{\pm}10.7$. Almost 50% of adolescent workers scored above the mean average in the Brief Symptom Inventory, indicating serious pschological health symptoms. Those who scored high for hostility, depression, negative self-concept, anxiety, and somatization were between 45.4% and 48.9% of the sample. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the underlying factors: a perception of "feeling very bad" health conditions was 2.07-fold whereas the rate of "no annual leave" was 0.73-fold, and both were found to be effective on psychological problems. Conclusion: In this study, it seems likely that psychological health problems are the result of multiple adverse factors including working conditions, annual leave, and health considerations.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.17-40
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to analyze the present condition of work-leisure balance and its influencing factors in employed young single households. Three groups of sample households-work-oriented, balanced, and leisure-oriented-were compared by factors related to work and leisure. Six cases were interviewed to obtain qualitative data on the subjective meaning of work-life balance and its influencing factors. The results showed different characteristics between the three groups based on the various work- and -leisure- related factors: average weekly working hours of the week, number of vacation days per year, weekday leisure time, degree of weekday freedom, and sufficiency of the leisure cost. In addition, the characteristics considered desirable for quality of life differed between groups. Finding the meaning of life through work and leisure was very important for those respondents, who have an unstable position in the labor market, and who want to delay making decisions on moving into the marriage and family-building phase recognized as a major development task for Korean adults.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.332-339
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• 2022

Purpose: Bus drivers are at high risk of chronic diseases due to risk factors associated with poor diet, physical inactivity, high levels of sedentary behaviors, and unfavorable working environments. This study developed a mHealth program for bus drivers, and examined the effectiveness of a mHealth program for promoting physical activity among bus drivers using wearable devices and health coaching. Methods: Forty-seven workers from two bus companies were allocated to the experimental group and the control group. Participants were asked to wear a wearable device (Fitbit Charge HR) during waking hours for a day. Participants in the experimental group were provided with a Fitbit, weekly face-to-face health coaching, a mHealth workbook, and text and photo messaging for 12 weeks. The control group only received a Fitbit. Results: By week 12, there were significant differences between the experimental and control groups in exercise self-efficacy (p<.015) and daily walking steps (p<.001). Conclusion: The findings have demonstrated that the mHealth program using wearable devices and health coaching is effective for bus drivers for promoting physical activity. Based on our findings, it is recommended to encourage the mHealth program using wearable devices and health coaching for bus drivers' wellness.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.550-561
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• 2019

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to provide basic data for the improvement of the working environment for health prevention and related countermeasures for shift workers. This study was conducted based on the Fifth Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS), which analyzed the health effects of shift work forces and compared them with preceding studies. Methods: By analyzing secondary rates using raw data from the 5th KWCS, 4,870 (9.7%) of the 50,184 total study subjects were divided into shift work and 45,314 (90.3%) non-shift work groups based on the response to shift status. Variables that could affect work health issues were identified and corrected. A cross-analysis was conducted to examine demographic characteristics (gender, age, and education level) of the workers and occupation characteristics (monthly net earnings, employment type, occupation, working period up to now, workplace scale, type of work system, and weekly working hours). In order to find the work health issue ratio between the shift and non-shift work groups, logistic regression was analyzed and the association with health problems according to shift type by gender was looked at through cross-analysis. Results: According to the surveys conducted from the 1st KWCS (2006) to the 5th KWCS (2017), the proportion of shift workers continued to increase. Also, muscular pains in the lower limbs (hips, legs, knees, feet, etc.) (OR=1.135, 95%CI 1.031-1.251), headaches, eyestrain (OR=1.580, 95% CI 1.428-1.748), anxiety (OR=1.715, 95% CI 1.402-2.099), difficulty falling asleep (OR=1.391), and other problems (OR=7.392) were reported. In addition, back pain, muscular pains in shoulders, neck and/or upper limbs, muscular pains in lower limbs (hips, legs, knees, feet, etc.), headaches, eyestrain, depression, anxiety, overall fatigue resulted in significant results for both male and female shift workers. Depression and anxiety were higher in female shift/circulation compared to males. Conclusions: The social nets for the health and safety of shift workers should be explored in a variety of ways, including management and supervision of shift sites, attempts to reorganize and improve the shift system, development of workers' health recovery programs, promotion, systematic treatment, and compensation systems.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.225-229
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• 2021

Background: The socioeconomic burden of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) is significant, and kitchen work is a high-risk occupation for MSDs due to the intensive manual workload and repetitive movements that are involved. However, there are very few studies on MSDs and rest breaks as a workplace intervention among kitchen workers. This study examined the relationship between insufficient rest breaks and increased MSD risk among Korean kitchen workers. Methods: Sociodemographic and occupational factors of 1,909 kitchen workers were collected from the 3rd-4th Korean Working Conditions Survey data. Five items on rest breaks at work were categorized into two groups, "sufficient" and "insufficient." The number of MSDs and work-related MSDs (WMSDs), an outcome variable, was obtained from the sum of MSDs/WMSDs in three anatomical sites (back, neck, and upper limb, lower limb). The association between rest breaks and MSDs was estimated using zeroinflated negative binomial analyses, with adjustments for age, education level, and weekly working hours, and the analyses were stratified by sex. Results: After adjustment, significant associations were found between insufficient rest breaks and an increased risk of MSDs (odds ratio [OR] 1.68 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.11-2.54) and WMSDs (OR 1.40 95% CI 1.01-1.96) among female kitchen workers. Insufficient rest breaks were significantly associated with MSDs in female kitchen workers in all three anatomical sites. Conclusion: This study emphasizes the need for rest breaks as a workplace intervention for preventing MSDs in kitchen workers. Further studies to reveal the causality of this relationship are required.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.11-21
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• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the relationship among musculoskeletal problems, sleep problems, and self-rated mental health of home-care workers. Methods: Data were collected from 447 home-care workers spanning three occupation types: life supporters for the elderly, home-visit caregivers, and life supporters for the disabled. Musculoskeletal problems, sleep problems, and self-rated mental health were assessed using structured questionnaires. Factors affecting self-rated mental health were analyzed using multiple regression. SPSS was used to test the mediating effects of sleep problems on musculoskeletal problems and self-rated mental health. Results: Among the general characteristics, the variables that showed significant differences in musculoskeletal problems were monthly income level, caring-related career duration, weekly working hours, and occupation type; and the variable that showed significant differences in self-rated mental health was occupation type. Among the occupation types, supporters for the disabled had the most musculoskeletal problems and the lowest self-rated mental health. Musculoskeletal problems among home-care workers had a direct negative effect on self-rated mental health and indirect negative effects on sleep problems. Conclusion: Measures are needed to reduce the differences in working conditions and health status among the occupation types of home-care workers. Considering the relevance between the health issues of home-care workers, the development of a carefully designed health promotion strategy is required.

• Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
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• v.35
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• pp.46.1-46.12
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• 2023

Background: As unpredictable work schedule (UWS) has increased worldwide, various studies have been conducted on the resulting health effects on workers. However, research on the effect of UWS on workers' well-being in Korea is still insufficient. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between UWS and work-family conflict (WFC) using 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS). Methods: Both UWS and WFC were measured using self-reported questionnaires, using data from the 6th KWCS conducted between 2020 and 2021, including 31,859 participants. UWS was measured by questions regarding the frequency of changes in work schedules and limited advanced notice. WFC was measured by questions regarding work to family and family to work conflicts. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the association between UWS and WFC. Results: The prevalence of UWS was higher among men, those under 40 years old, service and sales workers and blue-collar workers, and those with higher salaries. Workplace size also influenced UWS prevalence, with smaller workplaces (less than 50 employees) showing a higher prevalence. The odds ratio (OR) for WFC was significantly higher in workers with UWS compared to workers without UWS after adjusting for gender, age, marital status, occupation, salary, education, weekly working hours, shift work, company size, and having a child under the age of 18 years, employment status (OR: 3.71; 95% confidence interval: 3.23-4.25). Conclusions: The analysis of nationwide data revealed that UWS interferes with workers' performance of family roles, which can lead to WFC. Our findings suggest that it is crucial to implement policies to address unfair work schedule management, promoting a healthier work-life balance and fostering a conducive environment for family responsibilities.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.1-28
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• 2011

The purpose of this study is to analyze the family's meals of the daily time use and to examine how shared meals time together with family is influenced by socio-demographic variables. The Time Use Survey data collected by Korean National Statistical Office in 2009 is used. Among the total sample of 21,000 individuals, 9,179 samples who are married, aged from 20 to 59 years old and non-farmers are selected for analysis. The statistical methods are frequency, percentage, and censored regression model. The following is a summary of the major findings. The first, compared with the research results in 1999 and 2004, the time use of meals by adults is longer. But average time of family meals decreases and rates of family meals participants 2009 decrease 5.6% than 1999. Secondly, the family meals time increases from about 36 minutes on weekdays to about an hours at weekends. Regardless of the day, the women's family meals time is longer than that of men's. Thirdly, the influencing factors on family meals are sex, age, education, presence or absence of spouses, monthly income, weekly working hours and presence or absence of preschoolers. And the magnitude of gender differences in daily shared meals is not particularly large except in the case of some socio-demographic variables. Regardless of the day, women's family meals time is more affected by either dual-earner status or monthly income than that of men's.