• Title/Summary/Keyword: workers' health and safety

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Safety Climate and Occupational Stress According to Occupational Accidents Experience and Employment Type in Shipbuilding Industry of Korea

  • Kim, Kyung Woo;Park, Sung Jin;Lim, Hae Sun;Cho, Hm Hak
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • v.8 no.3
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    • pp.290-295
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    • 2017
  • Background: Safety climate and occupational stress are related with occupational accident. The present study tried to identify the differences in safety climate and occupational stress according to occupational accidents experience and employment type (e.g., direct workers and subcontract workers). Methods: In this study, we conducted a survey using safety climate scale and Korean Occupational Stress Scale and classified the participants into four groups: direct workers working for accident-free departments, direct workers working for accident departments, subcontract workers working for accident-free departments, and subcontract workers working for accident departments for 2 years within the same workplace in the shipbuilding industry. Results: The direct workers and subcontract workers showed diverse results in subscales of safety climate and occupational stress. This result is supported by existing studies; however, further study is necessary for more supporting evidence and elaborative methodological approach. Conclusion: The necessity of management for safety climate and psychosocial factor such as occupational stress for both direct workers and subcontract workers as a whole is suggested by this study.

The Impact of Occupational Safety and Health Information on Precarious Workers' Self-rated Health (안전보건정보 제공이 일용근로자의 주관적 건강인식에 미치는 영향)

  • Hyunseung Roh
    • Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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    • v.33 no.4
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    • pp.471-484
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    • 2023
  • Objectives: This study aimed to confirm the relationship between occupational safety and health information and self-rated health among precarious workers. Methods: A cross-sectional explanatory study design was conducted using data from the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency's 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey. The participants were 1,569 precarious workers living in South Korea. Descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation analysis, and hierarchical regression were used for data analyses by SPSS (version 25.0). Results: As a result of the study, occupational safety and health information had a significant positive effect on the self-rated health of precarious workers. The results suggest that occupational safety and health information contributes to the self-rated health of precarious workers. Conclusions: Therefore, it is suggested that policies should be developed to improve occupational safety and health information in workplaces. In addition, strategies should be developed to promote the usefulness of occupational safety and health information to precarious workers.

Differences in sleep quality and fatigue according to gender of shift workers in electronics manufacturing industries (전자제품 제조업 교대 근로자의 성별에 따른 수면의 질과 피로도 차이)

  • Kim, Ki-Woong;Chung, Eun-Kyo;Park, Hae Dong;Kim, Kab-Bae;Kang, Joon Hyuk;Ro, Jiwon;Seo, Hoe-kyeong
    • Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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    • v.27 no.2
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    • pp.138-148
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    • 2017
  • Objectives: Sleep quality is directly related to the health, quality of life and working capacity and is affected by age, gender, exercise, life habits. Gender dissimilarities in sleep quality are acknowledged. However, the gender difference in the quality of sleep in shift workers was not well known. Our aim was to study the less known gender differences in the quality of sleep of shift workers. Methods: 1,008 study subjects aged between 21 and 57 years among these, 637(525 male and 112 female workers) were daytime workers and 371(253 males and 118 female workers) were shift workers. Sleep quality was measured by self-report through the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index(PSQI) and fatigue was measured by using the Chalder Fatigue Scale(CFS). All data was analyzed using SPSS version 19.0 program. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute. Results: Overall, sleep quality was found to be worse in shift workers than in daytime workers and in female than in male. Fatigue in shift female workers was significantly higher than in daytime female workers and shift male workers. In Spearman correlation analysis results, fatigue were significantly associated with gender, drink habit, regular exercise, working hours and sleep quality. With group male workers as the reference, the odds ratio(OR) for having a CFS was 2.115(${\beta}$ value=0.749, p<0.01), and subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, daytime dysfunction and PSQI were 1.541(${\beta}$ value=0.432, p<0.05), 2.297(${\beta}$ value=0.831, p<0.001), 1.798(${\beta}$ value=0.587, p<0.01) and 2.224(${\beta}$ value=0.799, p<0.01), respectively. Conclusions: Shift work played an important role in lowering the quality of sleep, and the effect was more pronounced in female workers than in male workers. Sleep quality was related to fatigue, especially sleep quality, sleep duration, sleep disturbances and daytime dysfunction were significantly related. Therefore, to improve fatigue and sleep quality of shift worker, it is necessary to improve healthy habits such as regular exercise, smoking cessation, and limited drinking. In particular, it is urgent to develop and implement a regular exercise program to reduce fatigue and improve the quality of sleep in workplace.

Screening of Workers with Presumed Occupational Methanol Poisoning: The Applicablility of a National Active Occupational Disease Surveillance System

  • Eom, Huisu;Lee, Jihye;Kim, Eun-A
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • v.10 no.3
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    • pp.265-274
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    • 2019
  • Background: Methyl alcohol poisoning in mobile phone-manufacturing factories during 2015-2016 was caused by methyl alcohol use for cleaning in computerized numerical control (CNC) processes. To determine whether there were health complications in other workers involved in similar processes, the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute conducted a survey. Methods: We established a national active surveillance system by collaborating with the Ministry of Employment and Labor and National Health Insurance Service. Employment and national health insurance data were used. Overall, 12,048 employees of major domestic mobile phone companies and CNC process dispatch workers were surveyed from 2016 to 2017. We investigated methyl alcohol poisoning by using the national health insurance data. Questionnaires were used to investigate diseases due to methyl alcohol poisoning. Results: Overall, 24.9% of dispatched workers were employed in at least five companies, and 23.9% of dispatched workers had missing employment insurance history data. The prevalence of blindness including visual impairment, optic neuritis, visual disturbances, and alcohol toxicity in the study participants was higher than that reported in the national health insurance database (0.02%, 0.07%, 0.23%, and 0.03% versus 0.01%, 0.07%, 0.13%, and 0.01%, respectively, in 2015). Moreover, 430 suspicious workers were identified; 415 of these provided an address and phone number, of whom 48 responded (response rate, 11.6%). Among the 48 workers, 10 had diseases at the time of the survey, of whom 3 workers were believed to have diseases related to methyl alcohol exposure. Conclusion: This study revealed that active surveillance data can be used to assess health problems related to methyl alcohol poisoning in CNC processes and dispatch workers.

A Study on the Effect of Improvement of Safety Management on the Promotion of Safety and Health of Workers in Construction Sites (건설현장의 안전관리 개선사항이 근로자의 안전보건 증진에 미치는 영향에 관한 연구)

  • Lee, Duck Hee;Park, Jong Young;Youm, Hie Sang
    • Journal of the Society of Disaster Information
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    • v.17 no.3
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    • pp.568-578
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    • 2021
  • Purpose: TThis study seeks to understand the provisions of the Industrial Safety and Health Act and the Construction Technology Promotion Act and to propose measures to prevent serious industrial accidents by seeking to promote safety and health of workers through improvement of safety management at construction sites. Method: A survey was conducted on construction sites with more than 50 permanent workers (5 billion won in construction amount). The analysis of the data was conducted using the JAMOVI statistics program and based on objective data. Result: Multiple regression analysis was conducted to verify the hypothesis of this study, and the results of the analysis. The participation of workers in safety and health activities has the highest impact on the promotion of safety and health of workers. Conclusion: In order to promote safety and health of workers at construction sites, compliance with safety and health rules of workers is required and improvements should be made to allow workers to participate in safety and health activities.

Health Status and Improvement Measures for Irregular Plant Construction Workers at Yeosu National Industrial Complex (여수지역 비정규직 플랜트 건설 근로자의 안전보건 실태와 개선방안)

  • Choi, Sangjun;Kim, Shin-Bum
    • Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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    • v.19 no.3
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    • pp.182-194
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    • 2009
  • This study was conducted to evaluate health status and to propose health protection measures of irregular plant construction workers in Yoesu National Industrial Complex (YNIC). The status of safety and health management was examined in five areas including safety and health education, work environment monitoring, health examination, health management record, and personal protective equipment (PPE) for plant construction workers. The safety training rate for plant construction workers was reached high at 91%, The training was mostly consisted of safety accident related things, but training on hazardous materials was found to be insufficient. Workplace monitoring results showed that the compliance rate for work environment for irregular construction workers was 54% and workplace monitoring during turnaround (TA) period with high risk of exposure to hazardous agents has not been implemented. While 61.4% of irregular workers received the general health examination but only 36.8% received the special health examination. The special health examination was found to be conducted only upon welders from 2-3 years ago. The issue of health management record upon irregular construction workers was not being implemented. In case of PPE, basic safety protective equipments such as safety shoes, safety belt, safety helmet were being supplied well while the supply rate of respirator for organic vapor was relatively low at 40%. Based on this study, two suggestions to maximize the utilization of the current safety and health program were made while boosting its effectiveness in protecting workers' health. First, the role of owners (petrochemical plant) related to safety and health should be strengthened. Second, in consideration of the characteristics of construction workers who usually engage in short term employment and frequent movement, community based health management organization is suggested that can overcome such structural problem and carry out the implementation of health examination and sustained health management.

Investigation on the Health and Safety Hazards of Construction Workers

  • Kal, Won-Mo;Park, Jong-Tae;Son, Ki-Sang
    • International Journal of Safety
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    • v.4 no.2
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    • pp.43-46
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    • 2005
  • The construction workers might be at the risk of many occupational injuries and illnesses. To protect workers from various hazards, industrial health and hygiene systems were specified for the construction workers by law. It is important to know the actual health and safety(H&S) conditions by tasks and the characteristics of injuries and illnesses of construction workers. This study was designed to investigate the actual conditions of construction workers exposed to various harmful substances and work elements including evaluation of health status of each worker and general H&S system. Questionnaire was sent to 600 construction workers nationwide and totally 367 people responded to it having 61.67% of response rate. The common construction hazards were dust(29.6%), noise(19.3%), repetitive motions(12.0%), handling excessive heavy materials(11.2%) in order. The repetitive motions and handling heavy materials related to muscle disorders accounted for 23.2%. The accident and injury types were in order of overexertion, falling, overturning, dropping or flying, electric shock, collision, etc.

A Study on The Prevention of Accidents and Foreign Workers

  • Seung-Hyuck PARK;Won-Mo GAL;Hye-Ryeong O;Mi-Hwa JANG;Seok-Soon KWON
    • Journal of Wellbeing Management and Applied Psychology
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    • v.7 no.3
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    • pp.25-30
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    • 2024
  • Purpose: It is necessary to establish more systematic and efficient accident prevention measures in relation to the promotion of safety activities to prevent safety accidents of foreign workers at construction sites, especially as safety accidents of foreign workers continue to occur among industrial accidents occurring at domestic construction sites. In this study, I would like to suggest ways to respond to legal issues related to the recruitment of foreign workers and ways to promote safety management that can effectively reduce industrial accidents through various safety management measures. Research design, data and methodology: In order to establish systematic safety management measures for foreign workers, in-depth research was attempted by collecting and analyzing various data such as the current status of domestic industrial accidents, employment status of foreign workers, and disaster statistics. Results: In addition, I intend to establish and present a more systematic safety management plan by conducting various analysis and feasibility review such as risk assessment education in terms of accident prevention for foreign workers. Conclusions: By establishing and presenting more systematic management measures, such as foreign employment, employment by occupation, and on-site education, this safety management system can effectively prevent accidents for foreign workers and is expected to contribute to the prevention of accidents at domestic construction sites for both construction companies and construction officials.

The survey study on working conditions and industrial safety & health of foreign workers (외국인근로자의 근로환경 및 안전보건실태 조사 연구)

  • Yi, Kwan-Hyung;Cho, Hm-Hak
    • Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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    • v.14 no.1
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    • pp.53-63
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    • 2012
  • The purpose of this study is to grasp foreign worker's industrial safety and health state, which find out the improvement to secure the basic safety net for foreign workers. We have investigated 2,050 workers through direct interviews during the period from April 12, 2010 to May 31, 2010. And the result of analysis, foreign worker's daily average working time is 10.6 hours(40.8% workers in total work 10~12 hours), the extent of exposure to harmful and dangerous working environment is 'the position which cause pain in neck, waist, hands, shoulders, legs'(69.3%), 'repetitive hands and arms movement'(66.1%). It showed 'experience of accident damage or disease related work'(27.3%), 'never apply for industrial accident compensation' is revealed high at 73%. As a result of completing a safety health education for a year, it showed 'never educated'(40.2%), 'the institute that foreign workers have used for help and advice is the foreign worker's support center'(61.9%) Thus, hiring foreign workers in the company are small in site, the environment is too harmful and dangerous. In addition, no safety and health managers, legally blind spot located in the health and safety, because it is an urgent meet for these measures to improve.

Lymphohematopoietic Cancer Mortality and Morbidity of Workers in a Refinery/Petrochemical Complex in Korea

  • Koh, Dong-Hee;Kim, Tae-Woo;Yoon, Yong-Hoon;Shin, Kyung-Seok;Yoo, Seung-Won
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • v.2 no.1
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    • pp.26-33
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    • 2011
  • Objectives: The purpose of this retrospective cohort study was to investigate the relationship between exposure of Korean workers to petrochemicals in the refinery/petrochemical industry and lymphohematopoietic cancers. Methods: The cohort consisted of 8,866 male workers who had worked from the 1960s to 2007 at one refinery and six petrochemical companies located in a refinery/petrochemical complex in Korea that produce benzene or use benzene as a raw material. Standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) and standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated for 1992-2007 and 1997-2005 based on the death rate and cancer incidence rate of the Korean male population according to job title (production, maintenance, laboratory, and office workers). Results: The overall mortality and most cause-specific mortalities were lower among these workers than those of the general Korean population. Increased SMRs were observed for leukemia (4/1.45; SMR 2.77, 95% CI: 0.75-7.09) and lymphohematopoietic cancers (5/2.51; SMR 2, 95% CI: 0.65-4.66) in production workers, and increased SIRs were also observed in leukemia (3/1.34; SIR 2.24, 95% CI: 0.46-6.54) and lymphohematopoietic cancers (5/3.39; SIR 1.47, 95% CI: 0.48-3.44) in production workers, but the results were not statistically significant. Conclusion: The results showed a potential relationship between leukemia and lymphohematopoietic cancers and exposure to benzene in refinery/petrochemical complex workers. This study yielded limited results due to a short observational period; therefore, a follow-up study must be performed to elucidate the relationship between petrochemical exposure and cancer rates.