Introduction. Eldercare organizations face high sickness absence rates and staff turnover and rely heavily on temporary workers to fill staffing gaps. Temporary workers may experience differences in job demands and resources compared to permanent workers, but this has been largely understudied.

Aim. To compare perceived job demands and resources between permanent and temporary Swedish eldercare workers.

Methods. Permanent and temporary eldercare workers in a Swedish municipality were invited to answer a digital survey on work environment conditions. Differences between permanent and temporary workers in job demands and resources were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance adjusted for age, sex, place of birth, and percent of full-time work and univariate analyses were conducted to consider differences in specific factors.

Results. 1076 permanent and 675 temporary workers received the survey and the final study sample included 451 permanent and 151 temporary workers. Multivariate analyses revealed that temporary workers reported statistically significant lower job demands compared to permanent workers, but no statistically significant differences in resources were found between the groups. Univariate analyses showed that temporary workers reported lower quantitative demands, perceived exertion, and time spent bending forward, than permanent workers. These data suggest comparable support across groups, but a higher workload among permanent workers.

Conclusion. Our findings indicate that temporary workers experienced lower job demands than permanent workers, but that no notable difference was found in resources. Interventions aimed at distributing job demands more evenly among eldercare workers with different employment forms may be necessary.

Background: High levels of occupational physical activity (OPA) may be related to pain and sickness absence in the eldercare sector, which is dependent on foreign-born workforce. However, no study has investigated the closeness of OPA in eldercare to the recommendations proposed by EU-OSHA and compared workers born in different countries, which is important to address inequalities in occupational health.

Aim: To determine how close the physical activity compositions of Swedish-born and foreign-born eldercare workers are to EU-OSHA's recommended composition (60% sitting, 30% standing, and 10% moving) during work hours. 

Methods: We analyzed data from 222 eldercare workers in three Swedish municipalities. Physical activity was assessed with a thigh-worn accelerometer for seven days.  Time spent sitting, standing, and moving at work (diary based) was analyzed using the Actipass software. The Aitchison distance between each observed OPA composition and the composition recommended by EU-OSHA was calculated and expressed as a closeness index ranging from 0 (‘worst possible’ composition [1:1:98]) to 100 (EU-OSHA composition [60:30:10]). The closeness indices for Swedish-born and foreign-born workers were compared using linear mixed models.

Results: The Swedish-born group (n=160, 72.1%) had an average composition of 49:39:12, which led to a closeness index of 88.3 [SD 7.1], while the foreign-born had a composition of 44:40:15 and closeness index of 84.9 [SD 7.6]. The two groups were significantly different (β=3.34; CI=[1.19:5.48]; p<0.01), even after adjustments for age, gender and sector (nursing home or homecare) (β=3.98; CI=[1.74:6.22]; p<0.01).

Conclusions: Compositions of OPA among foreign-born workers were further from the EU-OSHA recommendation compared to their Swedish peers. Task-related differences in patient care may explain our findings. Future studies should consider alternations between sitting, standing and moving, and develop interventions to promote a more balanced OPA between Swedish-born and foreign-born workers, and thus address potential inequalities in the eldercare sector.

Introduction: Occupational physical activity (OPA) plays a complex role in recovery and health, where both too much and too little activity can be detrimental. To promote sustainable work, the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) recommends a balanced OPA composition for jobs involving prolonged standing – such as in eldercare – of approximately 60% sitting, 30% standing, and 10% moving. This study examines whether eldercare workers whose OPA compositions align more closely with EU-OSHA recommendations report less need for recovery than those with less aligned compositions.

Methods: We analyzed data from 212 eldercare workers (188 [88.7%] women, 46.5 [SD 12.3] years of age) in three Swedish municipalities. Of these, 79 (37.3%) worked in nursing homes, and 133 (62.7%) in homecare services. Physical behaviors were assessed using a thigh-worn accelerometer worn for seven days, and working hours were identified using a self-report diary. Time spent sitting, standing, and moving at work was determined using the ActiPass software. The Aitchison distance between each worker‘s OPA composition and the EU-OSHA recommendation was calculated and expressed in terms of a closeness index ranging from 0 (composition furthest from the recommendation, [1:1:98] to 100 (ideal alignment with the recommendation, [60:30:10]). Need for recovery was assessed using the short version of the Dutch Need for Recovery Scale. The association between the closeness index and need for recovery was examined in linear mixed models, adjusting for age, sex, and sector (nursing home vs. homecare), while accounting for the hierarchical structure of the data.

Results: Eldercare workers spent on average, 47.4% of their working time sitting, 39.4% standing and 13.2% moving. The mean closeness index was 87.3 (SD 7.3). We found a negative association between the closeness index and need for recovery, for both unadjusted (β=-0.89; CI=[-1.4:-0.37]; p<0.01) and adjusted models (β=-0.95; CI=[-1.77:-0.14]; p<0.02).

Discussion: Our findings suggest that eldercare workers with OPA compositions closer to the EU-OSHA recommendation experience less need for recovery than those having more diverging compositions. This supports previous evidence indicating that an imbalance in OPA—in the present case excessive standing or moving—can contribute to fatigue and increased recovery needs. Workers were relatively close to the EU-OSHA recommended composition of behaviors, yet even small deviations were, on average, associated with higher recovery needs. However, understanding what constitutes a ‘high’ or ‘low’ closeness index in relation to health and well-being remains limited.

Conclusion: Our results show that structuring work tasks to promote a balanced mix of sitting, standing, and moving is important to prevent high recovery needs in eldercare settings. Further research is needed to understand the validity of the EU-OSHA guidelines for predicting physical behaviors that promote health. Also, in addition to the overall composition, the pattern of alternations between these behaviors should be considered to understand the extent to which different time patterns of OPA are associated with health outcomes.

This study investigates experiences of temporary work among care personnel in eldercare. Semi-structured interviews were performed with fifteen temporarily employed care personnel in municipal nursing homes or home care and analysedusing phenomenography. The informants’ experiences of having temporary employment were characterised by either a sense of flexibility or, more commonly,uncertainty, lack of control over life, time and economic situation, as well as difficulties associated with always being available. The informants’ experiences of working as temporary employees were characterised by the enjoyment of work and job satisfaction, differing experiences regarding the division of work and communication, but also being in an exposed position. The results reflect an experience of being in avulnerable position. Taking these results into consideration in developing interventions to enhance the working conditions for temporarily employed might as a secondary result decrease the turnover and increase the continuity of the care for the elder.

Objective: To determine to what extent pre-COVID-19 experience of telework was associated with perceived psychosocial working conditions (PWC; job demands, social support and influence at work) during the COVID-19 pandemic among white-collar workers in Sweden, and to determine to what extent the association depends on demographic factors, organizational tenure, and amount of computer use.

Methods: Cross-sectional questionnaire data from 603 white-collar workers were collected October-December 2020 in an industrial company.

Results: In general, telework experience was not significantly associated with PWC. Women who began teleworking due to COVID-19 reported more job demands than women not teleworking. For those who began teleworking due to COVID-19, managerial support increased with age.

Conclusion: In general, telework experience was not associated with PWC, but telework due to COVID-19 may have influenced PWC differently depending on gender and age.

Introduction: A systematic review is conducted in the study to investigate the relationship between telework and organizational economic performance indicators such as self-reported employee performance, organizational performance, actual employee turnover rates, or intentions.

Methods: The databases Scopus, Business Source Premier, and Web of Science were used to conduct a literature search. Original articles published from 2000 and up to May 2021 were selected. Studies were screened for inclusion independently by review pairs and data were extracted. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used to evaluate the quality of the studies included.

Results: Forty-three studies were included with some addressing multiple outcomes. Self-reported performance was higher for teleworking employees compared to those working in the ordinary workplace. The extent of the change in performance was dependent on individual characteristics and the extent of the teleworking practice in the organization. Telework was also associated with increased organizational performance, particularly in homogenous samples with unique work tasks. When telework is voluntary, it appears that both actual employee turnover rates and intentions to leave the organization are lower.

Discussion: Further research with high-quality prospective designs is necessary to properly understand the contribution of telework to organizational economic performance indicators.

Introduction

Flexibility in working life, including non-standard employment (NSE) and flexible work arrangements (FWAs), offers the organisation a better ability to adapt to changing conditions while also posing considerable challenges for organisations as well as workers. The aim of the Flexible Work: Opportunity and Challenge (FLOC) study is to investigate associations between NSE and FWA on the one hand, and individual, social and economic sustainability on the other.

Methods and analysis This prospective open cohort study targets approximately 8000 workers 18–65 years old in 8–10 public and private organisations in Sweden. We will use a comprehensive battery of measurement methods addressing financial performance, physical and psychosocial exposures, and physical and mental health, both at the organisational and the individual level. Methods include valid survey questionnaires and register data, and, in subpopulations, technical measurements, interviews and diaries. Main exposures are type of employment and type of work arrangement. Main outcomes are indicators of social and economic sustainability and, at the individual level, health and well-being. Data, collected over 54 months at approximately 18-month intervals, will be analysed using multivariate methods considering main effects as well as potential effect modifiers. The analyses will take into account that respondents are nested in organisations, divisions and/or have specific managers.

Ethics and dissemination: FLOC is approved by the Swedish Ethical Review Authority (decision numbers 2019–06220, 2020–06094 and 2021–02725). Data will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at international conferences, and researchers will assist the organisations in improving policies and routines for employment and organisation of work.

As the development of technical aids for telework has progressed, work has become more flexible in time and space. Among academics, the opportunity to telework has been embraced by most, but it is unclear how it relates to their health and well-being. The aim of this study was to determine how frequency and amount of telework is associated with perceived health, stress, recuperation, work-life balance, and intrinsic work motivation among teaching and research academics. An electronic questionnaire was sent to junior lecturers, senior lecturers, and professors at Swedish public universities. It included the General Health Questionnaire, Work Stress Questionnaire, items for assessing recuperation, the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction at Work scale, and parts of Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire, as well as questions about the frequency and amount of telework performed. In total, 392 academics responded to the survey. Multivariate analysis of variance showed significant differences between groups of academics with different telework frequency (p < 0.05). Univariate analyses of variance showed that ratings of stress related to indistinct organization and conflicts were higher among academics that telework several times per week or more than among academics that telework less than once per month. In regression analyses of associations between amount of telework (in hours per week) and the dependent variables, no significant effects were found. Although it cannot be concluded whether stress is a cause or an effect of frequent telework, the findings warrant further attention to academics who telework frequently.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered national recommendations encouraging people to work from home (WFH), but the possible impact of WFH on physical behaviors is unknown. This study aimed to determine the extent to which the 24-h allocation of time to different physical behaviors changes between days working at the office (WAO) and days WFH in office workers during the pandemic.

Methods: Data were collected on 27 office workers with full-time employment at a Swedish municipal division during the COVID-19 outbreak in May–July 2020. A thigh-worn accelerometer (Axivity) was used to assess physical behavior (sedentary, stand, move) during seven consecutive days. A diary was used to identify periods of work, leisure and sleep. 24-h compositions of sedentary, standing and moving behaviors during work and non-work time were examined using Compositional data analysis (CoDA), and differences between days WAO and days WFH were determined using repeated measures ANOVA.

Results: Days WFH were associated with more time spent sleeping relative to awake, and the effect size was large (F = 7.4; p = 0.01; ηp2 = 0.22). The increase (34 min) in sleep time during WFH occurred at the expense of a reduction in work and leisure time by 26 min and 7 min, respectively. Sedentary, standing and moving behaviors did not change markedly during days WFH compared to days WAO.

Conclusion: Days working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden were associated with longer duration of sleep than days working at the office. This behavioral change may be beneficial to health.

Flexible work arrangements permitting workers to work anytime and anywhere are increasingly common. This flexibility can introduce both challenges and opportunities for the organisation, as well as for worker work-life balance (WLB). This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the extent to which occupational factors (organizational, leadership and psychosocial) and individual work-related behaviours (over-commitment, overtime work and boundary management) are associated with WLB, and whether these associations are modified by the perceived level of flexibility at work (i.e., control over when, where, and how to do the work). In total, 2960 full-time office workers with flexible work arrangements at the Swedish Transport Administration participated. Associations were determined using linear regression analyses with adjustment for covariates. The strongest negative associations with WLB were found for over-commitment, quantitative job demands, expectations of availability, and overtime work. Strongest positive associations were found for boundary management, information about organizing work, social support, and relation-oriented leadership. Perceived flexibility was positively associated with WLB, and interacted with several of the examined factors, buffering their negative associations with WLB. Results suggest that WLB can be promoted by organizational initiatives focusing on minimizing excessive job demands, increasing psychosocial resources, supporting boundary management, and enhancing perceived flexibility.