• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.263-267
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• 2015

Significant changes in the past year have taken place in the world of work that are bringing new challenges with regard to employee safety and health. These changes have led to emerging psychosocial risks (PSRs) at work. The risks are primarily linked to how work is designed, organized, and managed, and to the economic and social frame of work. These factors have increased the level of work-related stress and can lead to serious deterioration in mental and physical health. In tackling PSRs, the European labor inspectorates can have an important role by enforcing preventive and/or corrective interventions in the content and context of work. However, to improve working conditions, unilateral interventions in the context and content of work are insufficient and require adopting a common strategy to tackle PSRs, based on a holistic approach. The implementation of a common strategy by the European Labor Inspectorate for tackling PSRs is restricted by the lack of a common legislative frame with regard to PSR evaluation and management, the different levels of labor inspectors' training, and the different levels of employees' and employers' health and safety culture.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.5-15
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• 2005

Purpose: The purpose of this study are to identify the influencing factors on work-related musculoskeletal disorders of women workers. Method: Data were collected by questionnaires from 616 women workers from in such industries as electronics, food product, garment product and analyzed using descriptive statistics, multiple logistic regression. Result: As its result, 71.3% of female manufacturing workers had musculoskeletal symptom. When Multiple logistic regression analysis on factors relating to musculoskeletal symptoms was carried out, age, work posture, job demand, type of industry, working hour, type of work, family support were statistically significant variables. Conclusion: In conclusion, this study identifies that age, work posture, job demand, type of industry, working hour, type of work, family support are important factors affecting WMSDs.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.21-35
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• 2010

There are many work-related injuries and diseases of fisheries in Korea. Fishermen have exposed to harmful environment, such as natural disasters, ultraviolet, noise, vibration, organic solvents, ergonomic risk factors, loss of fresh water and food, and psychologic stress. They have suffered from numerous work-related health problems, including musculoskeletal disorders, cardiovascular diseases, infectious diseases, pyschological diseases, decompression sickness, and so on. Sea accidents can cause deaths of fishermen and if sea pollution is occurred, fishermen have a great economic damage. However, the concern of these injuries and diseases has been little because they are small in number and have decreased. Fisheries are important core industries, so the problems of fisheries have to be solved by a government. But work-related injuries and diseases are not investigated properly and accurate diagnoses are not made due to loss of concern. We hope that this article will be a cornerstone to solving the work-related problems of fisheries.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.73-79
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• 2024

Background: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between work-related communication devices use during work outside of regular working hours and depressive symptoms in wage workers. Methods: Data from 50,538 workers aged 15 years or older who had participated in the 6th Korean Working Condition Survey (KWCS) were used. The final sample was 32,994 wage workers. The questionnaire asked the respondents how often they used communication devices for work during work outside of regular working hours. Depressive symptoms were assessed using WHO-5 Well-Being Index. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the association between work-related communication devices use during work outside of regular working hours and depressive symptoms. Results: The rate of depressive symptoms was highest among workers who did not use work-related communication devices during work outside of regular working hours. After adjusting for socio-demographic and work-related factors, the odds ratio of depressive symptoms among workers who used communication devices when working outside of regular working hours was 1.20 (95% CI: 1.09-1.32); the odds ratio of depressive symptoms in the group not using communication devices for free-time work was 1.66 (95% CI: 1.37-2.00), which was higher than that of the reference group, that is, workers who did not work outside of regular working hours, and was statistically significant. Conclusion: Regardless of whether work-related communication devices are used, working outside of regular working hours increases depressive symptoms. The use of work-related communication devices during work outside of regular working hours can reduce the rate of depressive symptoms.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.39-45
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• 2016

Purpose: Physical therapists are likely to be exposed to work-related musculoskeletal pain due to excessive repetitive tasks. This study was conducted to identify the relationship between work-related musculoskeletal pain and quality of life of physical therapists. Methods: A self-reported questionnaires was sent to 200 physical therapists at in Seoul and Kyoungido. The questionnaires was returned by 170 physical therapists. The questionnaire had included 4 items that coveringed demographic information, areas of musculoskeletal problems, pain rating scale, and WHOQOL-BREF. The analysis was completed using descriptive statistics, and differences between pain and demographic variables were identified using the chi-square test. The relationship between work-related musculoskeletal pain and quality of life was analyzed by t-test and Pearson's correlation. Results: The overall prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal pain was 76.8%. The most affected pain sites included the low back (48.8%), shoulder (45.,2%), hand and wrist (43.5%), and neck (33.3%). Pain ratings of subjects with pain was were moderate. There was a A significant difference for the subdomains of quality of life was observed between the subjects with musculoskeletal pain and those without pain. Weak negative correlations (r=-0.28) were observed between pain rating scale and QOL. Conclusion: These findings show that physical therapists appear to be at a higher risk for work-related musculoskeletal pain and physical domain of QOL. Therefore, Ffurther research is needed to investigate examine the effect of risk factors and ergonomics as physical load, general health status on prevalence of musculoskeletal pain.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.213-219
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• 2022

Objective: The Job Demand & Resources model suggests work characteristics are related to mental well-being and work engagement. Previous work describes the development of a combined construct 'engaged well-being at work' (EWB). To what extent changes in measures of this construct are responsive to changes in job demands and resources or associated with changes in job-related attitudes has not been established. Methods: Longitudinal employee-level data from three waves (German Linked Personnel Panel) were used. Logistic and linear fixed effects regression analyses explored longitudinal associations between changes in EWB for participants over a three-year period with changes in job demands and resources and job-related attitudes (job commitment, satisfaction, and turnover intentions). Results: While job resources were associated with increased odds for a change into a healthier and/or more engaged category of EWB, job demands reduced them. Job resources were more strongly related to higher EWB (OR_range = 1.22 - 1.61) than job demands (OR_range = 0.79 - 0.96). Especially psychological job demands showed negative associations with improved EWB (OR = 0.79). A change from the least desirable category 'disengaged strain' to any other category of EWB was associated with greater odds by up to 20.6 % for increased commitment and job satisfaction and lower odds for turnover intentions. Discussion: Improving work characteristics, especially job resources, could increase employees' EWB, emphasizing the importance of job characteristics for a healthy workplace. Because EWB seems to be associated with job attitudes, an improvement of this indicator would be relevant for employees and employers.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.78-82
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• 2016

Background: Little is known about the effects of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) on work-related quality of life in nurses. We aimed to investigate the effect of PMS on work-related quality of life in Turkish nurses. Methods: A total of 134 volunteer nurses were included in this cross-sectional study between January 2015 and March 2015. One hundred and thirty-four nurses completed a questionnaire regarding demographic data, the Premenstrual Syndrome Scale (PMSS), and the Work-Related Quality of Life Scale (WRQoL). The nurses were classified as having or not having premenstrual syndrome according to the PMSS. Results: The average age was $29.5{\pm}7.1years$ and the prevalence of PMS was 38.1%. The total score of PMSS was significantly negatively correlated with the overall score (r = -0.341; p < 0.001) and all subscale scores of the WRQoL and ranged from -0.207 to -0.402 (p < 0.05 for all). All of the WRQoL subscale scores except stress at work (p = 0.179) in nurses with PMS were significantly lower than those of nurses without PMS (p < 0.05). The age (${\beta}=-0.258$; p = 0.021) and PMSS total score (${\beta}=-0.314$; p < 0.001) increment negatively; however, optimistic thinking (${\beta}=0.228$; p = 0.008) positively affected overall WRQoL score. Conclusion: Nurses with PMS have decreased levels of work-related quality of life in their professional lives. Methods to help cope with cyclic premenstrual symptoms may be used, and as a result, productivity and work-related quality of life may increase.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.423-432
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• 2014

Objective and Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of individual characteristics, work-related factors, lifestyle factors, and health problems with work ability among aging workers in Korea. Method: In this cross-sectional survey, the study population consisted of 1,594 workers who had participated in a voluntary health promotion center and private workplace. Participants completed the work ability index. Results: The mean WAI score was 37.4, while the mean age of the sample was 43.25. In the age group over 50 showed 36.26. The majority of participants rated their work ability as 'good' to 'excellent', one-third moderate and about 7.5% poor. Work ability decreased significantly with age among the men. The younger group had higher scores on the work ability index than the age group over 50, except for mental resources. By work characteristics, work ability was analyzed to be the lowest in the case of work handling heavy stuff. Lastly, as a result of health factors analysis, the good management and retention of current health status can be the measure helpful to the improvement of work ability. Conclusion and Application: According to the results, it can be a basic principle to devise and enforce preventive measures on the factors for which improvement or action is possible, together with workplace-level systematic approach, in order to improve work ability. For such measures to be realized, it is necessary to check trends in change for several years.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.138-142
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• 2016

Background: Household waste collectors (HWCs) are exposed to hazardous conditions. This study investigates the patterns of workplace injuries and work-related illnesses of HWCs. Methods: This study uses cases of workplace injuries and work-related illnesses of HWCs that occurred between 2010 and 2011. We analyzed 325 cases of injuries and 36 cases of illnesses according to the workers' age, length of employment, size of workplace, injured part of body, day and month of injury, type of accident, agency of accident, and collection process. Results: There were significant differences in the effect of workers' length of employment, injured part of body, type of accident, agency of accident, and collection process. Results show that most injuries occur in workers in their 50s and older. This study also shows that 51.4% of injuries occur at businesses with 49 employees or fewer. Injuries to waste collectors happen most often when workers are electrocuted after slipping on the ground. The second most prevalent form of injury is falling, which usually happens when workers hang from the rear of the truck during transportation or otherwise slip and fall from the truck. Work-related illnesses amongst waste collectors are mostly musculoskeletal conditions due to damaging postures. Conclusion: These findings will be instructive in devising policies and guidelines for preventing workplace injuries and work-related illnesses of HWCs.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.216-221
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• 2014

Background: Mental health complaints are quite common in health care employees and can have adverse effects on work functioning. The aim of this study was to evaluate an e-mental health (EMH) approach to workers' health surveillance (WHS) for nurses and allied health professionals. Using the waiting-list group of a previous randomized controlled trial with high dropout and low compliance to the intervention, we studied the pre- and posteffects of the EMH approach in a larger group of participants. Methods: We applied a pretest-posttest study design. The WHS consisted of online screening on impaired work functioning and mental health followed by online automatically generated personalized feedback, online tailored advice, and access to self-help EMH interventions. The effects on work functioning, stress, and work-related fatigue after 3 months were analyzed using paired t tests and effect sizes. Results: One hundred and twenty-eight nurses and allied health professionals participated at pretest as well as posttest. Significant improvements were found on work functioning (p = 0.01) and work-related fatigue (p < 0.01). Work functioning had relevantly improved in 30% of participants. A small meaningful effect on stress was found (Cohen d = .23) in the participants who had logged onto an EMH intervention (20%, n = 26). Conclusion: The EMH approach to WHS improves the work functioning and mental health of nurses and allied health professionals. However, because we found small effects and participation in the offered EMH interventions was low, there is ample room for improvement.