Women’s health

M6.1 INTERACTION BETWEEN HAZARD EXPOSURES AND ORGANISATIONAL FACTORS IN WOMEN’S OCCUPATIONAL ILLNESSES IN MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES

J. L. Lu.National Institutes of Health, University of the Philippines

Introduction: The study aimed at looking into the problems caused by organisational factors such as job autonomy, content of job, nature of task, hazard exposure, and management styles to mental health of women workers; and to look into the association between physical and psychological illnesses.

Methods: This was a cross sectional study in an export zone involving 31 industries (stratified according to size and type of industry) and 613 women workers.

Results: Results showed that the overall good physical health of workers is affected by overtime and mental work. Workers who have autonomy to accomplish their work were 1.8 times more likely to have better level of physical health (p = 0.05). Those under close monitoring were 76% more likely to have poor physical health. Those exposed to poor quality of work suffered 44% more poor physical heath than those who had good quality of work (p = 0.05). Other results were: workers who were under work pressure and work overtime were more prone to having skin allergies. Other illnesses such as hypertension, low back pain, and respiratory problems had psychosomatic origin.

Conclusions: The study concludes organisational factors were statistically associated with overall physical health and certain occupational illnesses.

M6.2 LIFESTYLE, HARASSMENT AT WORK, AND SELF-ASSESSED HEALTH OF FEMALE FLIGHT ATTENDANTS, NURSES, AND TEACHERS IN ICELAND

H. K. Gunnarsdóttir¹, H. Sveinsdóttir², J. G. Bernburg³, H. Friðriksdóttir³, K. Tómasson¹.¹Research Center for Occupational Health & Working Life, Reykjavík, Iceland; ²Faculty of Nursing; ³Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland

Introduction: Whether the working environment or lifestyle factors play the biggest role for self-assessed health is often unknown. The aim of our study was to investigate health related lifestyles and harassment at work among female flight attendants in comparison with female nurses and female primary school teachers …