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Lee HL, Kim JH, Kang T, Lee G, Lee H, Kim HW, Kim SS. Disparities in Workplace Hazards and Organizational Protection Resources by Enterprise Size: A National Representative Study of South Korean Manufacturing Workers. Saf Health Work 2024; 15:284-291. [PMID: 39309279 PMCID: PMC11410467 DOI: 10.1016/j.shaw.2024.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2023] [Revised: 05/22/2024] [Accepted: 06/02/2024] [Indexed: 09/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Background This study aimed to identify the prevalence of workplace hazards and organizational protection resources according to the size of the enterprise in the manufacturing industry of the Republic of Korea. Methods We analyzed data of waged workers (weighted N = 5,879) from the Fifth Korean Working Conditions Survey (2017). Enterprise sizes were categorized as "micro enterprises" (less than five employees), "small enterprises" (5-49 employees) and "medium-large enterprises" (50 or more employees). Self-reported exposure to 18 physical, chemical, ergonomic, and psychological hazards were measured. The presence of organizational protection resources such as a labor union, a safety delegate working at the company, designated spaces to deal with safety, and the provision of health and safety information was evaluated. Results Compared to workers in medium-large enterprises, those in micro enterprises showed a higher proportion of exposure to most of physical, chemical, ergonomic, and psychological hazards, except for exposure to solvents, prolonged sitting, and experiencing a state of emotional unrest. On the other hand, workers in micro enterprises had the lowest proportion of access to organizational protection resources. Conclusion Our study demonstrates that manufacturing workers at the micro enterprise in the Republic of Korea are exposed to the most hazardous work environment and yet have access to the fewest organizational protection resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hye-Lin Lee
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji-Hwan Kim
- Institute of Health and Environment, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Taesun Kang
- Department of Safety Management, Seoul Cyber University, Republic of Korea
| | - Garin Lee
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea
| | - Hayoung Lee
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea
| | - Hee Won Kim
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea
| | - Seung-Sup Kim
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea
- Institute of Health and Environment, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
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Athar M, Mohd Shariff A, Buang A, Shuaib Shaikh M, Ishaq Khan M. Review of Process Industry Accidents Analysis towards Safety System Improvement and Sustainable Process Design. Chem Eng Technol 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/ceat.201800215] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Athar
- Universiti Teknologi PETRONASCentre of Advanced Process Safety (CAPS)Chemical Engineering Department 32610 Bandar Seri Iskandar, Perak Darul Ridzuan Malaysia
| | - Azmi Mohd Shariff
- Universiti Teknologi PETRONASCentre of Advanced Process Safety (CAPS)Chemical Engineering Department 32610 Bandar Seri Iskandar, Perak Darul Ridzuan Malaysia
| | - Azizul Buang
- Universiti Teknologi PETRONASCentre of Advanced Process Safety (CAPS)Chemical Engineering Department 32610 Bandar Seri Iskandar, Perak Darul Ridzuan Malaysia
| | - Muhammad Shuaib Shaikh
- Mehran University of Engineering and TechnologyDepartment of Chemical Engineering 76062 Jamshoro, Sindh Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Ishaq Khan
- Universiti Teknologi PETRONASCentre of Advanced Process Safety (CAPS)Chemical Engineering Department 32610 Bandar Seri Iskandar, Perak Darul Ridzuan Malaysia
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3
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Yang HY. Awareness of labor insurance coverage for occupational injuries and diseases among employees at small and large enterprises. Tzu Chi Med J 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tcmj.2013.03.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022] Open
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Abstract
Adults with better jobs enjoy better health: job title was, in fact, the social gradient metric first used to study the relationship between social class and chronic disease etiology, a core finding now replicated in most developed countries. What has been less well proved is whether this correlation is causal, and if so, through what mechanisms. During the past decade, much research has been directed at these issues. Best evidence in 2009 suggests that occupation does affect health. Most recent research on the relationship has been directed at disentangling the pathways through which lower-status work leads to adverse health outcomes. This review focuses on six areas of recent progress: (1) the role of status in a hierarchical occupational system; (2) the roles of psychosocial job stressors; (3) effects of workplace physical and chemical hazard exposures; (4) evidence that work organization matters as a contextual factor; (5) implications for the gradient of new forms of nonstandard or "precarious" employment such as contract and shift work; and (6) emerging evidence that women may be impacted differently by adverse working conditions, and possibly more strongly, than men.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kerry Souza
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mark R. Cullen
- Division of General Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
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Zimmerman LI, Lima R, Pietrobon R, Marcozzi D. The effects of seasonal variation on hazardous chemical releases. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2008; 151:232-8. [PMID: 17606325 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2007.05.074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2007] [Revised: 05/24/2007] [Accepted: 05/25/2007] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
SCOPE Accidental and intentional chemical releases are an increasing threat to our society. These events occur year around under different seasonal circumstances. A number of papers using the Hazardous Substances Emergency Events database (HSEES) have found some evidence that season may be an important variable affecting the number of hazardous chemical releases (HCRs). To the authors' knowledge, no analyses specifically focused on seasonal variation of HCRs. Significant effects of season are useful to further HCR prevention efforts and improve preparation and training of first responders, community evacuation, and hospital preparedness. RESULTS Seasonal variation is a factor in transportation HCRs, but not fixed facility HCRs. There is an overall seasonal effect for the cause of the event. There is also seasonal variation of HCRs with respect to geographical area, with more incidents in the South. The substances released also demonstrate seasonal variation with summer having more incidents involving acids, ammonia, chlorine, pesticides, paints and dyes. The number of victims treated at hospitals resulting from HCRs did not display seasonal variation. CONCLUSIONS This new additional information involving seasonal changes of HCRs adds to the literature on HCRs and may indirectly have implications for the prevention of incidents, training of personnel responding to HCRs, community planning, and local hazard vulnerability analyses and finally hospital preparedness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura I Zimmerman
- Department of Surgery, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
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Andersen LP, Kines P, Hasle P. Owner attitudes and self reported behavior towards modified work after occupational injury absence in small enterprises: a qualitative study. JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL REHABILITATION 2007; 17:107-21. [PMID: 17245638 DOI: 10.1007/s10926-007-9064-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Opportunities for modified work after an occupational injury are thought to be limited in small enterprises. This paper explores owner attitudes and self reported behavior towards modified work after injury-absence in small enterprises. METHODS Twenty-two owners of small construction and metal-processing enterprises were interviewed. RESULTS Opportunities for modified work were possible in spite of some owners' general objections. Owners found their own solutions here-and-now without help from external stakeholders, and had little knowledge of possibilities for financial or practical support for early return-to-work initiatives. CONCLUSIONS Initiatives formalizing modified work must be arranged in a way that supports the close social relations in small enterprises. Information to support the return to work process must be given when it is needed, i.e. at the onset of the prospect of lengthy work absence. The actual form of modified work should mainly be left up to the employer and the injured worker.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lars Peter Andersen
- Department of Occupational Medicine, Herning Hospital, Gl. Landevej 61, 7400 Herning, Denmark.
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Leigh JP, Marcin JP, Miller TR. An estimate of the U.S. Government's undercount of nonfatal occupational injuries. J Occup Environ Med 2004; 46:10-8. [PMID: 14724473 DOI: 10.1097/01.jom.0000105909.66435.53] [Citation(s) in RCA: 148] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Debate surrounds the size of the underestimate of nonfatal occupational injuries produced by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). We developed models that separated categories of injuries: BLS Annual Survey, federal government, agriculture, state and local government, self-employed outside agriculture, and all other. The models generated varying estimates depending on the assumptions for each category pertaining to job risks and amount of underreporting. We offered justification for the assumptions based on published studies as well as our own analyses of BLS data. The models suggested the Annual Survey missed from 0% to 70% of the number of injuries (from private firms, excluding the self-employed) it was designed to capture. However, when we included firms and governments the Annual Survey was not designed to capture, and considered reasonable assumptions regarding underreporting, we estimated the BLS missed between 33% and 69% of all injuries. We concluded that there was substantial undercapture in the BLS Annual Survey, some due to the excluded categories of government workers and the self-employed, as well as some due to underreporting.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Paul Leigh
- Departmetn of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Medicine School, University of California at Davis, 95616, USA.
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Chen XL, Wang YJ, Wang CR, Hu DL, Sun YX, Li SS. Burns due to gunpowder explosions in fireworks factory: a 13-year retrospective study. Burns 2002; 28:245-9. [PMID: 11996855 DOI: 10.1016/s0305-4179(01)00122-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the epidemiology of burns due to gunpowder explosions in fireworks factories. Three hundred and fifty-one patients having burns caused by gunpowder explosions in a fireworks factory were admitted to our center from 1 January 1987 to 31 December 1999 and the clinical notes of 339 patients were available for review. Data on age, sex, size, depth and sites of burn, incidence by month, inhalation injury, associated injuries, number of operations, length of hospital stay, morbidity, mortality, and causes of explosions were recorded. The majority of the patients were male, with a mean age of 36.7 years. The mean total burn surface area was 40.9%, mostly deep burns. The commonest areas of the body to be injured were the head and neck. One hundred and eighty-five patients (55%) were injured in December, November, and January. Sixty-five patients (19%) had an inhalation injury, 35 having tracheotomies and mechanical ventilation. Thirty-five patients (10%) had associated injuries, the commonest being the fracture of limbs (25 patients). Two hundred and thirty-two patients (68%) required operations while the number of operations including debridement and grafting, or tracheotomy, per patient were 2.7. The mean time in hospital of the survivors was 32 days with a range of 1-94 days. Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and sepsis were the commonest complications during the early post-burn period (7 days or less) and the later period (>7 days), respectively. Forty-four patients died in this series giving a mortality rate of 13%. The commonest cause of death was sepsis (27 patients), followed by multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) (11 patients). Most accidents (71%) were caused by too much gunpowder put in at one time and accidents resulting from carelessness while making fireworks. Prevention measures are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xu-Lin Chen
- Department of Burns, The First Affiliated Hospital, Anhui Medical University, Anhui 230022, Hefei, PR China.
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Quinlan M, Mayhew C, Bohle P. The global expansion of precarious employment, work disorganization, and consequences for occupational health: a review of recent research. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HEALTH SERVICES 2001; 31:335-414. [PMID: 11407174 DOI: 10.2190/607h-ttv0-qcn6-ylt4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 244] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
In this review of a range of studies on the health and safety effects of precarious employment in industrialized societies published since 1984, the authors examine the overall findings and methodological issues and identify areas in need of further research. Of the 93 published journal articles and monographs/book chapters reviewed, 76 studies found precarious employment was associated with a deterioration in occupational health and safety (OHS) in terms of injury rates, disease risk, hazard exposures, or worker (and manager) knowledge of OHS and regulatory responsibilities. Of the more than 25 studies each on outsourcing and organizational restructuring/downsizing, well over 90 percent find a negative association with OHS. The evidence is fairly persuasive for temporary workers, with 14 of 24 studies finding a negative association with OHS. The evidence is less strong for small business, and a handful of studies on part-time workers found no clear association with negative OHS outcomes (in some cases the reverse). Further research is needed to more clearly link health effects to particular business practices and neoliberal policies and to explore the regulatory implications of the growth of precarious employment. The authors suggest some ways to conceptualize the association between precarious employment and occupational health.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Quinlan
- School of Industrial Relations and Organisational Behaviour, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2052, Australia
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Xia ZL, Jin SX, Zhou YL, Zhu JL, Jin FS, Hu DL, Fu H, Jin TY, Christiani DC. Analysis of 541 cases of occupational acute chemical injuries in a large petrochemical company in China. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH 1999; 5:262-6. [PMID: 10633242 DOI: 10.1179/oeh.1999.5.4.262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
Abstract
The authors carried out a descriptive analysis of acute chemical intoxication in a large petrochemical corporation with 38,000 employees, located in a suburban district of Shanghai, China, to determine the chemicals involved and the primary causes of the incidents. Between 1977 and 1997, 350 cases of acute chemical-intoxication were recorded, resulting in a total of 541 workers with symptoms. Of these, 483 were male and 58, female, with over half the victims under 30 years old. Two hundred and seventy-five cases were serious enough to necessitate hospital admission. There were 266 cases of chemical irritation or inhalation responses (49.2%), 215 cases of mild chemical poisoning (39.7%), 31 cases of moderate poisoning (5.7%), and 29 cases resulting in critical injury (5.4%), including eight deaths (1.5%). The main causes of injury reported by patients were lack of training about safety (63%) and equipment failure (23%). The chemicals involved were asphyxiating gases (302 cases; 55.8%), irritating gases (111 cases; 20.5%), and other toxins. Intervention strategies for the prevention of acute chemical exposures were suggested to the corporation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Z L Xia
- School of Public Health, Shanghai Medical University, P. R. China
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