• 한국산업보건학회지
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• 제19권3호
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• pp.297-306
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• 2009

The purposes of this study were to investigate whether the program of health promotion and follow up feedback by periods could improve physical fitness related to work ability of the middle-aged and aged workers. Subjects were composed of two groups; workers aged below forty five and forty five and over who had measured their health-related physical fitness twice for 2 years (2006 & 2007) through the program of health promotion operated by Korea Occupational Safety & Health Agency. Paired t-test was used to evaluate the difference between the first measurement and re-measurement of health-related fitness which was operated after six to twelve months from the first one. We used 0.05 level for statistical significance. The results of this study were as follows. All measurement items including body fat ratio(%), $VO_2max$, grip strength, sit-up, and trunk flexion were significantly improved in both groups. The improvement(%) of $VO_2max$, grip strength of workers of forty five and above was lower than those of workers of below forty five. Servicing the program of health promotion and follow up feedback by periods may help workers' improvement of health-related physical fitness related to work ability.

• 품질경영학회지
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• 제38권3호
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• pp.425-438
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• 2010

This study investigates what effects employment flexibility have on the business performance in the computer programming, system consultancy and related services. An analysis of the effects of employment flexibility on outcomes of human resource management revealed that companies which had a higher proportion of temporary agency workers and adjusted employment more frequently had higher turnover rates. The study also showed that the higher the proportion of non-regular workers, outsourcing and the easier it was to adjust working hours, the higher the absence rate. Meanwhile, companies that made employment adjustments more often showed higher defect rates and lower customer satisfaction. It was also found that in companies with a higher proportion of outsourcing and higher possibility of employment adjustments, workers were less interested in new technologies.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• 제15권2호
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• pp.158-163
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• 2024

Objectives: The present paper aimed to examine whether an aging workforce is associated with an increase in work-related fatal injuries and to explore the underlying reasons for this potential increase. Material and methods: Aged workers were defined as those who were at least 55 years old. Work-related fatalities were assessed in aged and young workers who were registered with the workers' compensation system in 2021 in the Republic of Korea. Total waged workers, based on raw data from the Local Area Labor Force Survey in 2021, were used as the denominator to estimate the work-related fatality rates. Results: Most work-related fatalities in the aged workers occurred among individuals working in the "construction sector" (58.9%), those with "elementary occupations (unskilled workers)" (46.1%), and those with the employment status of "daily worker" (60.8%). The estimated incidence (0.973/10,000) of work-related fatalities among aged workers was about four times higher than that (0.239/10,000) among younger workers. "Falling," "collision," "struck by an object," and "trip and slip" were more frequent types of work-related fatalities among aged workers relative to young workers. The category of "buildings, structures, and surfaces" was a more frequent cause of work-related fatalities among aged workers than among young workers. Conclusions: Aged workers had a higher incidence of work-related fatalities than young workers. Frequent engagement in precarious employment and jobs, coupled with the greater physical vulnerability of aged workers, were likely causes of their higher level of work-related fatal injuries.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• 제14권3호
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• pp.267-271
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• 2023

Background: The objective of this study is to identify the working conditions and health status of Vietnamese male migrant workers in Republic of Korea, in comparison to the Korean general population. Methods: We conducted our survey through the Migrant People Center, and we received completed questionnaires from 87 male Vietnamese migrant workers. The questionnaire employed was identical to those used in the Korean Working Conditions Survey and the 2020 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The collected data from the Vietnamese migrant workers was then compared with the Korean reference population using indirect age-standardization. Results: Vietnamese male workers demonstrated a higher prevalence of health problems including hearing problems (age-standardized prevalence ratio (aSPR) 13.22, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 8.07-20.4), skin problems (aSPR 13.49, 95% CI: 8.07-20.4), and low back pain (aSPR 8.40, 95% CI: 6.50-10.69). Elevated exposure to workplace hazards such as chemicals (aSPR 2.36, 95% CI: 1.51-3.51), organic solvents (aSPR 2.22, 95% CI: 1.44-3.28), handling of heavy objects (aSPR 1.67, 95% CI: 1.24-2.21), and high temperatures (aSPR 1.96, 95% CI: 1.46-2.57) was observed among them. Additionally, they faced a higher risk of no personal protective equipment (aSPR 2.53, 95% CI: 1.26-4.52) and a greater prevalence of unmet medical needs (aSPR 7.14, 95% CI: 4.74-10.32). Conclusion: Our findings highlight the elevated workplace hazards, health problems, and unmet medical needs among Vietnamese male workers compared to the Korean reference population. These findings underscores the urgency for enhanced scrutiny over working conditions and protective equipment provision, coupled with efforts to improve healthcare accessibility and worker education.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
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• 제20권4호
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• pp.511-521
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• 2022

Decommissioning of nuclear power plants generates a large amount of radioactive waste in a short period. Moreover, Radioactive waste has various forms including a large volumes of metal, concrete, and solid waste. The disposal of decommissioning waste using 200 L drums is inefficient in terms of economics, work efficiency, and radiation safety. Therefore, The Korea Radioactive Waste Agency is developing large containers for the packaging, transportation, and disposal of decommissioning waste. Assessing disposability considering the characteristics of the radioactive waste and facility, convenience of operation, and safety of workers is necessary. In this study, the exposure dose rate of workers during the disposal of new containers was evaluated using Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport code. Six normal and four abnormal scenarios were derived for the assessment of the dose rate in a near surface disposal facility operation. The results showed that the calculated dose rates in all normal scenarios were lower than the direct exposure dose limitation of workers in the safety analysis report. In abnormal scenarios, the work hours with dose rates below 20 mSv·y^-1 were calculated. The results of this study will be useful in establishing the optimal radiation work conditions.

• 한국사회복지학
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• 제47권
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• pp.107-147
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• 2001

In the 1990s, with enacting of the laws on the family violence in Korea, agencies such as helpline 1366, counseling center and shelter for the female victims have been rapidly increasing in number. Also police and medical center have been viewed as having major responsibility for delivering services and social workers in community welfare center and public social worker have been expected play a role in community-based delivery systems for the female victims. The purpose of this study is to measure the level of the inter agency coordination and to find out the factors affecting the inter-agency coordination in family violence and to make policy implications for a better delivery system. The data were obtained from a social survey of family violence agencies, counselling center/shelter/helpline 1366, police, medical center, social workers of community center and of public sector in Seoul and Kyeongi area. The major results are as follows: 1) the level of inter-agency coordination is low, specially the referal cases of police and medical center is very poor. 2) The type of inter-agency coordination is referals and information sharing among agencies. 3) the factors affecting inter-agency coordination is agency type, wills and efforts of agency, information sharing, experience of family violence education. The current findings suggest that the delivery system to promote inter-agency coordination efforts and for police and medical center, social worker in private and public agency to respond promptly and properly would be built up.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• 제8권4호
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• pp.402-406
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• 2017

Transit workers constitute a blue-collar occupational group that have elevated smoking rates relative to other sectors of employed adults in the United States. This study analyzed cross-sectional tobacco survey data from 935 workers (60% African American; 37% female) employed at an urban public transit agency in California. Prevalence of current and former smoking was 20.3% and 20.6%, respectively. Younger workers were less likely than older workers to be current or former smokers. Having a complete home smoking ban was associated with decreased likelihood of being a smoker [odds ratio (OR) = 0.04, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.01-0.17], as were neutral views about whether it is easy for a smoker to take a smoking break during their shift (OR = 0.50, 95% CI 0.28-0.88). Current smoking among the sample is > 50% higher than the adult statewide prevalence. Potential points of intervention identified in this study include perceived ease of worksite smoking breaks and establishing home smoking bans. Tailored cessation efforts focusing on older transit workers more likely to smoke are needed to reduce tobacco-related disparities in this workforce.

• 한국환경보건학회지
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• 제44권5호
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• pp.409-420
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• 2018

Objectives: An outbreak of humidifier disinfectant-related respiratory disease has not only been a massive disaster for end users, but it is also a concern for the workers of the manufacturers. This study presents the results of a questionnaire survey on the health effects among workers involved in the manufacture of humidifier disinfectants. Methods: Seven sites where humidifier disinfectants were manufactured were identified. A questionnaire survey was conducted to assess the physical symptoms experienced by workers related to humidifier disinfectants. Among a total of 177 workers, 42 subjects were available for the survey. Results: Twenty-one of the 42 respondents reported that they experienced respiratory or skin and mucosal irritation symptoms during work. Of the respondents who experienced symptoms, 14 believed that their symptoms were related to the work process and reported that the symptoms were experienced while working. However, no respondents reported ongoing symptoms or sequelae during the investigation period, and this result could not minimize selection bias due to low response rates. We then compared the characteristics of the group who experienced suspicious symptoms with those of the group without any symptoms. There was no statistically significant difference between two groups. Conclusions: We could not find significant health effects related to the humidifier disinfectant manufacturing process, although 21 respondents experienced stimulant symptoms and 14 respondents believed that the symptoms were related to the work process. Due to the long period of time after occupational exposure and the lack of data, there were many limitations to this study. However, this is one of the few follow-up investigations of workers related to this large-scale disaster in South Korea and the limitations of this study highlight the need to follow up with a nationwide database rather than an occasional survey.

• 한국소음진동공학회논문집
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• 제22권10호
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• pp.940-948
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• 2012

In Korea, researches on the exposure assessment of the hand-transmitted vibration started from the mid-90, however, they were performed in the limited industries such as auto-assembly plants and the evaluation of the vibration was mostly conducted by ISO 5349(1986). Therefore, it was necessary to assess hand-transmitted vibration levels of workplace such as ship building/repairing industry or mining industry where occupational injuries are largely occurred and to evaluate the vibration levels using revised ISO 5349(2001). The SVAN 948 Four Channels Sound & Vibration Analyser was used for the measurement. The workers using a chain saw were exposed to 1.7~2.8 $m/s^2$ of daily vibration level. Workers using a rock drill in a coal mining were exposed to the highest vibration acceleration among workers and the levels were 7.1~10.8 $m/s^2$. Vibration levels of grinders were different according to the types of grinders. The hand-transmitted vibration of 3 types of grinders were measured and the levels were 3.3~11.1 $m/s^2$. Workers using a impact wrench were exposed to 1.5~1.6 $m/s^2$ of vibration. Out of 20 kinds of machines, only 4 tools provided the information of vibration acceleration on the instructions. In addition, the current condition of workplace to control vibration was not much different from the past because there are no vibration exposure limit.

• 한국직업건강간호학회지
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• 제22권4호
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• pp.295-304
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• 2013

Purpose: To identify work stress and job satisfaction of the emergency medical technician (EMT) and to contribute to the improvement of emergency care under the current emergency medical law. Methods: The data were collected by questionnaire from the total 849 EMTs (635 National emergency management agency (119) workers and 214 hospital workers) throughout the whole country from January 5, to March 5, 2012. Each level of indicator calculated under 100-point-scale was compared by t-test and ANOVA. Factors affecting stress and satisfaction were analyzed by Multiple Linear Regression Analysis (${\alpha}$=.05). Results: Mean level of job stress was markedly higher among 119 workers (76.9) than those in the hospital (56.6) (p<.001). Mean level of job satisfaction was higher among 119 workers (63.2) than those in the hospital (60.2) (p<.001). Conclusion: To diminish work stress and to increase job satisfaction, efforts to support the pride and to improve working condition considering the situations of the agency and to offer more education chance to keep and strengthen the specialty are needed.