Working Conditions Research Articles (Page 1)

Accelerated biological aging among chemical plant workers.

Vaccination versus antibody screening for measles immunity in health care workers.

Nail salon workers are routinely exposed to occupational hazards, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), ultraviolet radiation, fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and heavy metals. With the industry projected to double in size over the next decade, identifying exposure risks and intervention gaps is essential for workforce protection. This systematic scoping review synthesized peer-reviewed exposure assessments, health outcome studies, and intervention research in nail salons published between 2013 and 2024. We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences National Toxicology Program Handbook for Conducting Systematic Reviews. Risk of bias was assessed using the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology guidelines. Forty-two studies met inclusion criteria: 29 exposure assessments, 11 health outcome studies, and two intervention evaluations. Most were conducted in the U.S. (88 %), with sample sizes ranging from 20 to 150 workers. Common findings included inadequate ventilation (71 %), VOC concentrations above Occupational Safety and Health Administration limits, and persistent detection of methyl methacrylate, despite its U.S. Food and Drug Administration ban. PM2.5 was evaluated in one study and exceeded World Health Organization guidelines. Heavy metals were infrequently measured, though one study raised concerns about chronic exposure. Only 17 % of studies examined exposure-health outcome associations, with limited evidence on cognitive and psychosocial impacts. Two intervention studies reported improved knowledge and reduced exposures but lacked randomized designs. This review highlights the urgent need for evidence-based interventions, stronger regulatory oversight, and comprehensive evaluation of health impacts in this socially vulnerable workforce.

Anaerobic manure digesters are a hotly debated and rapidly expanding technology that extracts biogas from animal manure. We assessed claims by proponents and opponents of the technology by reviewing evidence regarding digesters and pollutant emissions, occupational health, environmental injustice, economics, and climate. Manure digesters can mitigate some impacts from industrial animal agriculture, such as odors and methane emissions, while potentially increasing or perpetuating others, such as ammonia emissions and nutrient pollution. While promoted as a climate solution, manure digesters only address a fraction of livestock-related greenhouse gas emissions and may exacerbate or introduce new occupational and community hazards, such as from flared biogas. Policies play a large role in subsidizing manure digesters, incentivizing further expansion of industrial animal agriculture-an industry with documented harms to rural populations. In summary, proponent claims in many cases overstated the evidence of actual benefits, while opponent concerns were either validated by the evidence or merit further investigation. Based on the current state of available evidence, manure digesters should not be promoted as a solution for manure management and energy production.

Work accidents are one of the serious problems that have a direct impact on worker safety and company productivity. This study was conducted at PMKS PT. Sisirau located in Aceh Tamiang. This research aims to explore potential sources of danger, evaluate the degree of associated threats, and formulate strategic preventive measures through the structured framework of Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment, and Control Determination (HIRADC) method. The focus of this study was on three work stations, namely loading ramp, boiling (sterilizer station), and tipler. The data used were in the form of work accident reports from January 2021 to February 2025, as well as the results of observations and interviews in the field. The results of the study showed that there were a total of 18 work activities identified as hazardous, consisting of 8 activities at the loading ramp station, 5 activities at the boiling station (sterilizer), and 5 activities at the tipler station. The results of the risk assessment showed that at the loading ramp station there were 5 activities with One activity presented moderate risk; three others showed low-risk potential. At the boiling station (sterilizer) there were 4 activities with a moderate risk and 1 activity with a low risk. Meanwhile, at the tipler station, among the evaluated activities, one was determined to involve a significant risk factor, whereas two others presented comparatively lower levels of risk, and 2 activities with low risk. Recommended risk control includes 7 activities with engineering control, 9 activities with administrative control, and 10 activities with mandatory Application of individual safety gear.

2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) is a selective, low-volatility, systemic herbicide. It is used to control broadleaf weeds in certain crops, such as rice, corn, and wheat. The use of 2,4-D has become widespread in both the agricultural and industrial sectors, with the serious drawback that 2,4-D residues can contaminate food, soil, and groundwater sources. It has been classified as a group 2B carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. This paper proposes the development of a new alternative methodology to traditional techniques for the control and monitoring of 2,4-D in natural water samples from agricultural areas surrounding the Quinto River in the province of San Luis. The herbicide was quantified directly, in the presence of the anionic surfactant SDS, the systems were filtered through blue band filter paper as a solid support, prior to determination by solid surface fluorescence (SSF) (λexc = 555nm; λem = 580nm). Under optimal working conditions, a detection limit and a quantification limit of 0.33 and 0.90 ng L- 1, respectively, with a linearity range of 0.90 to 1.13 × 103 ng L- 1. The proposed methodology was applied to natural water samples from agricultural areas, adjacent to the Quinto River in the province of San Luis, representing an innovative alternative to conventional methods for 2,4-D monitoring. The concentrations found were near to 3 ng L- 1. Additionally, among the advantages of the new method, it is important to highlight the generation of low volumes of waste, preserving the environment and thus contributing to some principles of green chemistry.

Purpose Public safety communicators (PSCs) provide an essential connection to public safety and health resources. Organizational stressors (job context) and operational stressors (job content) accompany the PSC occupation. The resultant occupational strain creates risk for adverse mental health outcomes, a challenge among PSC who already demonstrate high prevalence of mental health disorders. However, paucity in research on occupational experiences and mental health of PSC remains. Design/methodology/approach We surveyed Canadian PSC (n = 381) with opened ended questions about the effects their employment has on their mental health and workplace modifications they feel could support PSC mental health. Qualitative analysis revealed emerging themes using a constructed approach. Findings Findings reveal education, awareness, as well as organizational and operational factors that have affected our respondents' mental health and influenced considerations for how to make their workspace healthier based on their frontline experiences. Originality/value PSC provides an essential public safety service to our communities, but they lack recognition within research. Their contributions to society are accompanied by potential detriments to their occupational health subsequently affecting mental health. Lessons learned directly from self-reported experiences of PSC can be harnessed to improve working conditions, mental health and well-being for those in communications employment. Such work can also help to provide a foundation for future research to delve deeper into the occupational experiences of PSC, further shedding light on PSC who are behind the frontline providing a lifeline in and for the public safety ecosystem.

Police officers are exposed to potentially psychological traumatic events and are at high risk of developing post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSI). Development and wide implementation of best practices for managing PTSI are needed. The psychological first aid (PFA) framework encompasses trauma-informed knowledge to guide the development of best practices. Based on the framework and on a pilot performed among Canadian police officers, we propose a PFA program including: 1) PTSI awareness e-learning; 2) PFA training provided by local trainers; and, 3) peer-to-peer PFA intervention to mitigate PTSI in police officers. The study was designed to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of a large-scale PFA program implementation among Canadian police officers. A multi-phase mixed-methods participatory action research study is being performed in five phases according to the PFA implementation and the dynamic sustainability frameworks. The program 1) was adapted to environmental needs; 2) is progressively deployed; and, to be evaluated for 3) feasibility; 4) effectiveness; and, 5) sustainability. Local trainers (N = 10) were trained to then train PFA providers (N = 322 police officers) who could then administer the intervention to police officers as needed (i.e., PFA recipients). The e-learning is being co-developed and will be disseminated. Program feasibility (i.e., acceptability, demand, practicality, implementation) will be assessed through interviews with trainers (n = 10), providers (n = 30), and recipients (n = 20). The program effectiveness will be assessed by tracking changes in PTSI literacy and stigma among officers who complete the e-learning (n = 5700) using pre-post e-learning questionnaires. Pre-post training questionnaires with participating providers (n = 175) will track perceived competence to provide the intervention. Pre-post intervention questionnaires with recipients (n = 64) will track changes in putative protective factors (i.e., professional quality of life, work safety, coping, sense of efficacy, sense of hope) and symptoms of PTSI (i.e., anxiety-, depressive-, and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms). The PFA program is designed to help officers to recognize PTSI, promote self-care strategies and help-seeking, enhance organizational support, and expand psychological support. The study could provide trauma-informed guidelines for implementation and evaluation practices in high-risk and interdependent organizations and inform future directions for policy decisions. The study was pre-registered on OSF ( https://osf.io/7khgs/?view_only=33260c704ffc46ffb75a704320283ccf ).

This study aimed to develop and validate a screening tool tailored for working women to comprehensively assess premenstrual symptoms-including physical, psychological, and work-related domains-and to examine its reliability, validity, and association with absenteeism. In October 2021, a multidisciplinary expert panel comprising a gynecologist, a psychosomatic physician, a psychologist, occupational health specialists, and data scientists developed a set of 47 original items. We then recruited 3,239 working women with menstruation via an internet research company and administered these items to assess PMS-related symptoms. For scale development, we conducted exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, along with evaluations using Cronbach's alpha, receiver operating characteristic analysis, and logistic regression analysis. Of the participants, 331 women had experienced PMS (10%), and 393 women had taken sick leave because of PMS-associated symptoms (12%). Exploratory factor analyses with maximum likelihood and Promax rotation identified four domains with 27 items, including "Somatic symptoms'' (Cronbach's α = 0.93), "Psychological symptoms" (Cronbach's α = 0.94), "Lack of work efficiency" (Cronbach's α = 0.93), and "Abdominal symptoms" (Cronbach's α = 0.95). Using a split-half sample for the confirmatory factor analysis, the four-factor solution demonstrated acceptable model fit (RMSEA = 0.077, CFI = 0.928). The Average Variance Extracted values ranged from 0.54 to 0.68 across the four domains, and in all cases, the square root of AVE exceeded the corresponding inter-factor correlations, supporting the discriminant validity using the Fornell-Larcker criterion. We also confirmed the developed scale's criterion validity using existing PMS screening criteria and its concurrent validity through moderate correlation coefficients with Copenhagen Burnout Inventory scores. The receiver operating characteristic curve yielded a moderate construct ability for work absenteeism, including a sensitivity of 78%, a specificity of 57%, and an area under the curve of 0.735. A moderately reliable and valid new scale for PMS for working women was developed with efficacy for screening for work absenteeism.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has a growing presence in Australian workplaces. While early assessments focused on job automation and productivity gains, a growing body of evidence points to AI affecting workplace relationships, worker autonomy and psychosocial well-being. This paper examines the relational risks of AI in Australian workplaces, drawing on national and international literature. Businesses in Australia adopt AI technologies for data entry automation, document processing, fraud detection and Generative AI tools. Promising operational efficiency, these innovations also introduce risks of algorithmic management, the erosion of tacit knowledge, digital incivility and the devaluation of human labour. Current governance frameworks fail to sufficiently address these relational harms. This paper makes three contributions. First, it identified AI relational risks affecting workplace dynamics and worker agency. Second, it identifies gaps in Australia's policy response, particularly in the integration of AI-related risks into Work Health and Safety (WHS) regulations. Third, it proposes a framework for managing relational risks grounded in job crafting, participatory oversight and expanded WHS definitions. In doing so, it positions the worker not as a passive recipient of AI impacts but as a co-designer of workplace transformation.

Maintaining vigilance is critical for High-speed railway (HSR) in a fickle environment of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. A new vigilant leadership style was introduced into HSR literature, which directs employees to focus on, search for, and respond to potential future threats. This study constructs a research model to examine the effect of vigilant leadership on safety performance from a social information processing perspective, with individual mindfulness as boundary condition and knowledge sharing as a mediator. We adopted a time-lagged study with 961 samples and 137 workgroups collected from Chinese Railway Bureau over 3 months. The findings state that vigilant leadership is associated with employees’ safety performance by enhancing knowledge sharing. Employee’s mindfulness moderates the indirect effect of vigilant leadership on safety performance through knowledge sharing. The indirect effect is more positive when an employee’s mindfulness is high than when it is low. This research first introduces vigilant leadership to the Chinese HSR, which provides implications for raising the safety performance and long-term development of HSR organizations, and also benefits the HSR employees’ occupational health and safety.

(1) Background: Austria’s use of fully mechanized harvesting systems has been continuously increasing. Technical developments, such as traction aid winches, have made it possible to drive on increasingly steep terrain. However, this has led to challenges and potential hazards for the operators, resulting in higher stand damage rates and risks of workplace accidents. Since these systems and working environments involve a highly complex interplay of various parameters, the purpose of this protocol is to propose a new set of methodologies that can be used to obtain a holistic interpretation of the psychophysiological interrelationship between the working conditions and stress of harvester and forwarder drivers. (2) Methods: We developed a research protocol to analyse the (a) environmental and (b) machine-related parameters; (c) psychological and psychophysiological responses of the operators; and (d) technical outcome parameters. Within this longitudinal exploratory field study, experienced drivers were monitored for over an hour at the beginning and the end of their workday while operating in varying steep terrains with and without a traction aid winch. The analysis is based on macroscopic (collected using cameras), microscopic (eye-tracking glasses and AI-driven emotion recognition), quantitative (standardized questionnaires), and qualitative (interviews) data. This multimodal research protocol aims to improve the health and safety of forest workers, increase their productivity, and reduce damage to remaining trees.

To assess psychosocial working conditions and mental health status among U.S. workers in small businesses. Data from the 2018 and 2022 General Social Survey's Quality of Worklife module were used to examine mental health and psychosocial working conditions among U.S. adults employed by businesses with 1-49 employees. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analyses were conducted, adjusting for race, education, marital status, age, and job tenure. Using combined data, workers reporting low job satisfaction, lack of management priority for safety, high work-family conflict, unfair wages, and limited promotion opportunities had significantly higher odds of reporting one or more poor mental health days in the past 30 days, compared to those reporting more favorable working conditions. Findings highlight modifiable workplace factors that may lead to improved mental health among small business workers.

An Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS) is essential to ensure safe working environments, prevent risks, and promote workers’ well-being. In Colombia, its implementation is mandatory under regulations such as Decree 1072 of 2015, Resolution 0312 of 2019, and the National Occupational Health and Safety Plan 2022–2031 (Resolution 3077 of 2022), among others. Despite this regulatory framework, micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face major challenges, including lack of financial resources, insufficient regulatory knowledge, and a shortage of trained personnel. Resolution 1151 of 2022 expanded the scope of OHS licenses and defined new professional profiles to support related activities, including industrial hygiene, accident investigation, training, and system design. This study analyzes the current state of the OHSMS in SMEs in the urban center of Sincelejo (department of Sucre, Colombia), focusing on their level of compliance and business perception. Findings reveal deficiencies in resource allocation, training plans, and affiliation with the social welfare system. Although 60% of employers are unaware of regulations, they show willingness to comply if provided with technical and financial support. The study concludes that strengthening the OHSMS in SMEs requires effective coordination among business owners, public institutions, and private entities. It recommends enhancing training strategies, providing economic incentives, and fostering a culture of prevention as a foundation for business sustainability.

Alternative learning environments (ALEs) support students with complex behavioral, emotional, and social needs, yet only a small amount of research has examined their occupational and mental health needs using a socioecological approach. This study aimed to demonstrate the process of conducting a socioecological needs assessment in an ALE and identify needs from multiple stakeholder perspectives. A qualitative descriptive design was employed. Semi-structured interviews and focus groups were conducted with 24 stakeholders, including students, educators, counselors, administrators, and a dietitian. Data were analyzed thematically by stakeholder group. Four overarching themes emerged: This School is a Shelter, We Believe in Resilience, We Work Well Together, and Every Student, Every Day, with two additional subthemes. The findings revealed that ALEs are viewed as protective spaces that promote belonging and resilience, but they are also shaped by stigma, limited resources, and systemic barriers to participation. Students’ perspectives emphasized both vulnerability and a strong desire for solidarity and belonging. The socioecological needs assessment process proved valuable for engaging diverse stakeholders and mapping barriers and facilitators across levels of the ecosystem. These findings highlight actionable directions for trauma-informed, interprofessional strategies that can strengthen occupational participation and mental health supports in ALEs.

The COVID-19 pandemic spread rapidly in 2020, impacting public health and disrupting the global economy through halted trade and business suspensions. Countries responded with quarantines, border closures, and travel restrictions. This study investigates the workforce disruptions caused by COVID-19 in the food processing industry. A retrospective analysis of 1,034 occupational health and safety records from an Ankara-based food factory examined work accidents and health-related absenteeism, comparing pre-COVID (2019) data with the COVID-19 period (1 May 2020–30 April 2021). Total workforce losses increased from 28,995 hours in 2019 to 31,920 hours during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Losses due to work accidents decreased significantly, from 3,750 hours pre-pandemic to 982.5 hours during the pandemic. Conversely, work-related illness resulted in higher losses during the pandemic (7,245 hours) compared to the pre-COVID-19 period (5,542.5 hours). When non-COVID-19-related causes, workforce losses during the pandemic amounted to 18,720 hours—noticeably lower than the 28,995 hours recorded in 2019. COVID-19 was directly responsible for 41.4% of the total workforce loss during the pandemic year. Within this category, the majority of hours lost (55.8%) were due to quarantine following exposure to confirmed COVID-19 cases, while only 5.5% were attributed to hospitalization or death. Although the food sector workforce experienced substantial impacts from COVID-19, the implementation of strict factory-level health and safety measures appears to have effectively mitigated workday losses, particularly by limiting virus transmission and reducing quarantine durations.

A collaborative control strategy combining the hyperbolic sine-cosine optimization (SCHO) algorithm with fuzzy adaptive linear active disturbance rejection control is proposed to address the nonlinearity and uncertainties in the hydraulic position servo system of shock absorber test benches. First, based on the dynamic characteristics of the shock absorber fatigue test bench and the tested shock absorber, a linearized model of the valve-controlled hydraulic cylinder and its load was established. The coupling mechanism of system parameter perturbation and disturbance was also analyzed. A third-order LADRC (Linear Active Disturbance Rejection Control) was designed considering the linear model characteristics of the test bench hydraulic servo system model to quickly estimate internal system disturbances and perform real-time compensation. Secondly, a multi-objective optimization function was constructed by integrating system performance indicators and incorporating controller and observer bandwidths into the optimization objectives. The SCHO algorithm was used for the global search and optimization of key LADRC parameters. To enhance the controller’s adaptive capability of modeling uncertainties and external disturbances, a fuzzy adaptive module was introduced to adjust control gains online according to errors and their rates of change, further improving system robustness and dynamic performance. The results show that compared with traditional PID, under different working conditions, the proposed method reduced the maximum tracking error, overshoot, and system response time by an average of 45%, from 15% to 5%, and by approximately 30%, respectively. Meanwhile, the parameter combination obtained via SCHO effectively avoids the limitations of manual parameter tuning, significantly improving control accuracy and energy utilization. The simulation results indicate that this method can significantly enhance position-tracking accuracy compared with traditional LADRC, providing an effective solution for position-tracking control in hydraulic servo testing systems.

BackgroundThis paper explores the connection between organizational support and job satisfaction among healthcare workers in Croatian home care institutions. The aim is to understand how supportive structures influence satisfaction in physically demanding work environments. Home care involves high physical demands and a need for constant support from superiors.ObjectivesThe research aimed to identify which elements of organizational support are linked to greater job satisfaction. It also assessed whether geographical location (urban vs. rural) influences the availability of such support.MethodsA quantitative survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire among 517 health workers in home care in Croatia. Data analysis included Spearman correlations and the chi-square test to examine associations between variables.ResultsThe results show a significant connection between organizational support, especially in terms of communication with superiors and professional development, and job satisfaction. Urban environments tend to provide greater organizational support, while health workers in rural areas report a lack of support and greater physical workload.ConclusionThis research emphasizes the importance of organizational support for job satisfaction in home care and indicates the need to adjust working conditions according to geographic specificities. The work's contribution to nursing lies in providing empirical evidence that can serve as a basis for improving policies and practices in the home health care sector.

Purpose Grounded in the psychology of working theory (PWT), the current study examined how workplace ostracism (WO) is associated with nurses’ perception of decent work (DW). Design/methodology/approach We relied on a three-wave time-lagged data collection strategy to target the participants and the data collection purpose. Findings Results revealed that the social exclusion of nurses at the workplace negatively influences work volition (WV), which leads to their diminished perception of DW. Additionally, the WV mediates the relationship between WO and perception of DW. Practical implications This study adheres to the pillars of the DW agenda and addresses the issue of inadequate working conditions in Pakistan. The findings of this research will potentially provide valuable insights for formulating policies and recommendations about the healthcare profession (i.e. nurses) and prevailing working conditions. Originality/value The Study sheds new light on extant research regarding nurses’ DW in Pakistan by identifying a micro-level predictor, namely WO, and its influence on WV and DW.

Tuberculosis continues to represent a major occupational risk in healthcare environments, particularly for healthcare workers who have persistent contact with patients who may be infectious. Despite the high occupational burden of tuberculosis among healthcare workers, there remains a lack of focused reviews that comprehensively evaluate preventive interventions across all levels of prevention within healthcare settings. In this literature review, effective preventive interventions relevant to tuberculosis transmission have been examined. Primary preventive interventions seek to diminish exposure through protective interventions such as respirators, improvements in ventilation systems, and implementation of educational programs regarding infection control protocols. Secondary preventive interventions target early diagnosis and routine screening with efforts to detect cases and latent infections early, before they progress to active disease. Enhancements in diagnostic technology have improved both the accuracy and speed of detection, further aiding the efforts of controlling nosocomial transmission. Tertiary preventive interventions target enhancing compliance with treatment protocols, managing complications of active infection, and controlling resistant strains through individualized follow-up and interventions. Barriers like stigma and lack of resources, however, often impede such interventions’ effectiveness in many cases. This narrative literature review highlights the imperative for strengthened workplace policies, an expansion of educational programs, and continued research in new and emerging interventions like new vaccine and diagnostics technology development. All these factors aim to optimize intervention effectiveness for tuberculosis and protect the health and welfare of workers in the medical field.