Abstract
The number of precarious workers is increasing globally, and precarious employment is becoming a public concern in terms of workers’ health. However, sufficient research on precarious employment and its impact on musculoskeletal pain (MSP) is lacking. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between precarious employment and the risk of MSP among Korean wage workers. After merging the data from the 4th and 5th Korean Working Conditions Surveys, 59,644 wage workers were analyzed. The control group comprised full-time permanent workers, and precarious employment was defined as workers involved in temporary or daily employment, or part-time workers. The outcome variable was the summed number of MSP in three anatomical sites (back, neck and upper limb, lower limb). Zero-inflated negative binomial analyses were selected to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) between precarious employment and MSP. In adjusted models with age, sex, educational level, income level, weekly working hours, and occupation, precarious employment was significantly associated with an increased risk of both MSP (OR 1.66 95% CI 1.56–1.77) and work-related MSP (OR 1.18 95% CI 1.11–1.25). Given the job insecurity and health inequity associated with precarious employment, special attention on precarious workers’ health is needed.
Highlights
Precarious employment is a collective term that refers to a set of labor market working conditions that are disadvantageous to workers [1]
There is no overall consensus regarding a precise definition of the term, precarious employment is often considered to be characterized by temporary employment, income insufficiency, and lack of social protection or worker rights [2,3,4]
A quarter (27.29%) were working in precarious employment. All variables such as age group, sex, educational and income level, weekly working hours, occupation, and ergonomic risk factors were significantly associated with precarious employment
Summary
Precarious employment is a collective term that refers to a set of labor market working conditions that are disadvantageous to workers [1]. There is no overall consensus regarding a precise definition of the term, precarious employment is often considered to be characterized by temporary employment, income insufficiency, and lack of social protection or worker rights [2,3,4]. 1900s, led to intense changes in the labor market seeking more flexible employment [5]. This accelerated the transition from standard employment, characterized by permanent and full-time contracts, to non-standard or atypical types of employment [6]. In 2019, the combined proportion of daily and temporary employment was estimated to be 21.7% among the economically active population in Korea [9]
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