The current paper reports the main results of several studies carried out on Italian workers using the work ability index as a complementary tool for workers’ periodical health surveillance. The work ability index shows a general decreasing trend over the years, but it changes differently according to working conditions and personal health status. In jobs with higher mental involvement and autonomy, but lower physical constraint it remains quite constant and high over the years, while it significantly decreases with a steeper trend the higher the physical work load and the lower the job control are. Sex and working hours appear to act concurrently in influencing work ability, particularly in association with more physically demanding jobs. It is therefore necessary to adopt flexible interventions, able to give ageing shift workers a proper support for maintaining a satisfactory work ability, by means of actions addressed both to work organisation and psycho-physical conditions.

Ageing, working hours and work ability / G. Costa, S. Sartori. - In: ERGONOMICS. - ISSN 0014-0139. - 50:11(2007), pp. 1914-1930.

Ageing, working hours and work ability

G. Costa
Primo
;
S. Sartori
Ultimo
2007

Abstract

The current paper reports the main results of several studies carried out on Italian workers using the work ability index as a complementary tool for workers’ periodical health surveillance. The work ability index shows a general decreasing trend over the years, but it changes differently according to working conditions and personal health status. In jobs with higher mental involvement and autonomy, but lower physical constraint it remains quite constant and high over the years, while it significantly decreases with a steeper trend the higher the physical work load and the lower the job control are. Sex and working hours appear to act concurrently in influencing work ability, particularly in association with more physically demanding jobs. It is therefore necessary to adopt flexible interventions, able to give ageing shift workers a proper support for maintaining a satisfactory work ability, by means of actions addressed both to work organisation and psycho-physical conditions.
Ageing; Health care workers; Shift work; Work ability; Working hours
Settore MED/44 - Medicina del Lavoro
2007
Article (author)
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/40959
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