The Impact of Mandate Contract and Self-Employment on Workers' Health-Evidence from Poland.

Katarzyna Piwowar-Sulej,Dominika Bąk-Grabowska

doi:10.3390/ijerph18063138

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to analyze the correlations between two clearly defined forms of non-standard employment (self-employment and mandate contract) and workers’ health. The study also addressed such variables as gender, age, length of service, and the reason for employment (voluntary vs. non-voluntary). The research was carried out in Poland in 2020 using the CATI method (a telephone interviewing technique), and it covered a sample of 200 workers (100 self-employed and 100 working under a mandate contract). Most of the respondents declared that their form of employment did not affect their health. However, the statistical analysis showed significant differences in health status between the self-employed and those working on a mandate contract. Self-employed respondents experienced mental health impacts more often, whereas those working under a mandate contract more frequently declared that their physical health was affected. The length of service was only important for mental health, having a negative impact on it. The respondents’ age and gender turned out to be statistically insignificant, which is in contradiction to many previous research findings. The inability to choose one’s form of employment resulted in worse physical health. These findings demonstrate the importance of certain variables that were not prioritized in previous studies and emphasize the need to clearly define what non-standard and precarious forms of employment are, as well as revealing new correlations between the studied categories and providing directions for further research.

Highlights

The standard, traditional form of employment is secured with an open-ended, fulltime—and stable—employment contract
Even though the vast majority of respondents admitted that their form of employment did not affect their health, the analysis showed a statistically significant correlation between the form of employment and the perceived impact of this form on both physical health (χ2[1, N = 194] = 10.171; p = 0.001) and mental health (χ2[1, N = 184] = 6.153; p = 0.013)
In the former case, the people employed on a mandate contract more often experienced negative impacts on their physical health from their form of employment

Summary

Introduction

The standard, traditional form of employment is secured with an open-ended, fulltime—and stable—employment contract. New forms of employment are emerging that differ from the traditional employment contract [1]. Non-standard forms represent an increasing proportion of employment in much of Western Europe. It is recommended to continue research projects focused on expanding and clarifying the selected issues [4], because many previous studies designed to determine the impact of precarious forms of employment used a category of non-standard employment [5]. Specific recommendations include clearer, more precise definitions of the original concepts that take into account the fact that nonstandard forms of employment and precarious employment are defined differently, a more detailed understanding of the pathways and mechanisms through which non-standard

Objectives

Results

Conclusion