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Equal health at work? Protocol for an observational study of work organisation, workload and musculoskeletal complaints among women and men in grocery retail
University of Gävle, Faculty of Health and Occupational Studies, Department of Occupational Health Science and Psychology, Occupational Health Science. University of Gävle, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-1443-6211
Department of Social Sciences, Mid Sweden University, Sundsvall, Sweden.
Department of Social Sciences, Mid Sweden University, Sundsvall, Sweden.
University of Gävle, Faculty of Health and Occupational Studies, Department of Occupational Health Science and Psychology, Occupational Health Science. University of Gävle, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research.
2020 (English)In: BMJ Open, E-ISSN 2044-6055, Vol. 10, no 1, article id e032409Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Introduction Women generally report more work-related musculoskeletal complaints than men and have higher rates of sickness absence, even within occupations. One likely reason is that work tasks within the occupation are gendered, i.e. women and men have different tasks, even when sharing the same job title. Retail is an appealing sector for studying working conditions and work environment in a gender context. The prevalence of work-related complaints is high, physical loads may differ considerably between tasks, and the distribution of tasks is likely gendered. The overall aim of this study in retail is to examine factors at the organisational and individual level that may, in a gender perspective, explain working conditions, work tasks, workloads, and musculoskeletal health.

Methods and analyses Data will be collected in two grocery stores, each with 50-70 workers, at two occasions interspersed by about one year. In each of these four waves, data collection will include a web-based questionnaire to all workers addressing, e.g. work tasks, psychosocial factors, fatigue and pain; semi-structured interviews with managers and around 10 workers addressing, e.g. competences and decision levels; and technical measurements of postures, movements and heart rate in about 30 workers. The study is novel in combining an organisational gender perspective addressed through qualitative methods with a quantitative analysis of tasks, workload and health. The design allows an examination of both how genders may differ, and why they may differ, as well as analyses of the extent to which gendered working conditions change over time in the two participating stores.

Ethics and dissemination Approval of the study by the Swedish Ethical Review Authority (reference number 2017/404) has been obtained. This work will be disseminated by publication of peer-reviewed papers in scientific journals, presentations at scientific conferences, and in meetings with representatives from Swedish retail, including unions and employers’ organisations.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
BMJ Publishing Group Ltd, 2020. Vol. 10, no 1, article id e032409
Keywords [en]
Musculoskeletal, Occupation, Tasks, Work environment
National Category
Occupational Health and Environmental Health
Research subject
Health-Promoting Work
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-29459DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-032409ISI: 000519306600211PubMedID: 31937651Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85077884610OAI: oai:DiVA.org:hig-29459DiVA, id: diva2:1304514
Note

This work was supported by the Swedish Work Environment Authority, grant number 2015/033753-85

Available from: 2019-04-12 Created: 2019-04-12 Last updated: 2023-08-28Bibliographically approved

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Mathiassen, Svend ErikJohansson, Elin

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