Abstract
Background: There is limited research on the heterogeneity of worker suicides. We compared differences in workers’ suicides by clustering suicide deaths. Methods: From 2010 to 2017, 353 suicide deaths were claimed in the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance; variables were coded using a standardized methodology. A two-step cluster analysis classified the clusters based on demographic and employment conditions. Details of the suicide, clinical variables, personal stresses, and work-related stresses were compared using the chi-square test and one-way analysis of variance. Results: We identified five clusters and they differed particularly in work-related stress. “Responsibility-burdened type” experienced excessive responsibility as managers; “role-changed type” experienced a sudden and unpredictable role change as clerks or sales workers; “risk-exposed type” experienced physical risk factors at work (working alone, outdoors, and in shifts) as machine operating and assembling workers, or craft and related trades workers; “job-insecurity type” experienced unstable employment (irregular, nonpermanent) as elementary or service workers; “workplace-violence type” was mainly unmarried women who lived alone, and experienced interpersonal conflict and violence as professionals and related workers. There were no differences between clusters in clinical variables (except problem drinking) and personal stresses. Conclusion: Interventions to alleviate work-related stress in worker clusters are needed to prevent suicide in workers.
Highlights
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among the working population in Korea, taking first place among those aged 10–39 years, and second for 40–59-year-olds [1].In 2017, approximately 9000 people of the Korean working population died by suicide
Work-related stress is an important factor in the study of worker suicide because longterm exposure to negative psychosocial factors at work is related to mental health problems, such as depression, which increase the risk of suicide [6,7]
Except for problem drinking among the clinical variables, there were no significant differences in details of the suicide and clinical variables
Summary
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among the working population in Korea, taking first place among those aged 10–39 years, and second for 40–59-year-olds [1]. In 2017, approximately 9000 people of the Korean working population (aged 15–64 years) died by suicide. This indicates an increase of about 57% (from 15.5 per 100,000 population in 2000 to 24.3 in 2017) in less than 20 years. Suicide studies have been conducted to classify clusters of suicide deaths in the general population [2–5]. Studies on work-related stress and suicide death among workers are relatively rare.
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