Search Results (9)

Work capacity depends on many factors, including the age and health status of the employee, but also on personal characteristics and attitudes, such as reduced tolerance of unfavorable working conditions (Work Annoyance, WA), excessive commitment to work (Overcommitment, OC), passion for work (Work Engagement, WE), and social interactions (Social Capital, SC). A total of 1309 workers who underwent a medical examination at work completed questionnaires on work attitudes and assessed their work ability using the Work Ability Score (WAS). The relationship between variables expressing work attitudes and WAS was studied using hierarchical linear regression and moderation analyses. WA is associated with low WAS values; SC is a positive predictor of WAS and moderates the effect of WA on WAS. OC reduces work ability, while Vigor and Dedication, components of WE, have a strong positive effect on work ability. To improve the work ability of employees, employers and managers should improve social relations in the workplace and discourage overcommitment. A positive working environment can increase engagement and avoid triggers of work annoyance. Full article

The labour supply has historically been subject to influence from the economic cycle. On the other hand, there is a paucity of research in the Latin American region examining the impact of social factors on labour participation in diverse contexts. This study examines the spatial dependence of the cyclical sensitivity of labour supply in 23 provinces of Ecuador. A time series analysis was conducted to calculate the cyclical sensitivities of labour supply, and spatial econometric techniques were applied to assess spatial dependence using monthly data for the period 2021 to 2024. We found evidence of a positive and significant spatial dependence in the cyclical sensitivity of labour supply. Our findings suggest that labour decisions in one province are influenced by those in neighbouring provinces, thereby providing a framework for the design of public policies that take into account these interdependencies. Full article

(1) Background: The right to refuse dangerous work (RTRDW) is essential for preventing industrial accidents and protecting worker safety in Korea. However, its use remains limited in practice. This study seeks to identify the factors hindering its activation across industries such as construction, manufacturing, and services, offering a comprehensive analysis beyond previous research. (2) Methods: A survey was conducted across key industries to assess five factors—safety behavior, communication, management commitment, education and training, and education and training—using structural equation modeling (SEM) to evaluate their influence on the exercise of RTRDW. (3) Results: The SEM model showed a good fit (χ² = 1151.333, p < 0.001, TLI = 0.978, CFI = 0.984, RMSEA = 0.05). The most significant factors influencing RTRDW were safety performance behavior and communication, while ambiguous regulations, poor training, and fear of job loss discouraged its use. (4) Conclusions: To improve RTRDW activation, clearer regulations, enhanced safety education and training, stronger management commitment, and better communication are necessary. Addressing these issues can help workers confidently exercise their right to refuse dangerous work, enhancing overall workplace safety. (5) Benefits: This study provides practical strategies for policymakers and industry leaders to promote safety, empowering workers to use RTRDW effectively and contributing to a safer work environment. Full article

Against the background of considerable regional disparities, we test the “discouraged worker” hypothesis, which postulates that poor regional socioeconomic conditions foster students’ aspirations for more education, ultimately leading to an extension of their educational careers. Our two dependent variables are (i) whether students aspire to prolong their general school careers or enter vocational training and (ii) whether they in fact prolong their school careers. To that end, we link regional-level data to individual-level data from the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS). To describe regional conditions adequately, we illustrate geographical patterns in socioeconomic conditions relevant for school-to-work transitions (e.g., labour market conditions and availability of vocational training opportunities). We compare two operationalisations of regional areas: (i) administrative districts and (ii) public transport areas. Our results show that students are more likely to aspire to prolong their general school careers in socioeconomically deprived regions. Moreover, the effects are stronger when school-based vocational training opportunities are scarce. The effects on actual transitions vary according to the school track attended and the availability of educational alternatives in the general school system. Finally, the operationalisation of regions varies regarding effect sizes and corresponding levels of statistical significance. Full article

In this paper, we investigate whether gender employment rate responses to upward and downward fluctuations in the business cycle are symmetric and whether these responses differ depending on gender employment segregation in sectors and on different type of welfare states using the Esping-Andersen’s classification. We use the VAR model both in linear and non-linear (asymmetric) specification of GDP shocks and impulse response function. We find no convincing evidence of discouraged worker effect as it occurs in neither country fully, which suggests not hidden unemployment but rather the phenomenon of involuntary part-time workers becoming more common with the increase of precarious employment. Furthermore, we find that the pattern of gender employment adjustments to GDP fluctuations indicates that the gender sectoral segregation is a deeply entrenched feature within given economic sectors (construction, education, and accommodation) in all studied countries (Germany, Poland, and Portugal). Hence, this stagnation of gender segregation contributes to the preservation of gender pay differentials in spite of many years of equal pay legislation in the EU members. Full article

Snakebite envenoming causes more than 140,000 deaths annually and at least triple this number of disabilities. The World Health Organization classified snakebite as a Neglected Tropical Disease in 2017 and developed a strategy to halve death and disability from snakebite by 2030. To achieve this goal, snakebite victims need to receive safe and effective treatment. This descriptive, cross-sectional study surveyed student health professionals (N = 312) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and was designed to identify major gaps in community practices and hospital resources for snakebite treatment. Participants reported using traditional community practices (44%, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 39–50%), allopathic practices (7%, 95% CI = 5–11%), or a combination of both (49%, 95% CI = 43–54%) to treat snakebite. Harmful practices included tight arterial tourniquets (46%, 95% CI = 41–52%) and wound incisions (15%, 95% CI = 11–19%). Many participants (35%, 95% CI = 29–40%) also turned to traditional healers. Students who treated snakebite injuries within the last 5 years (N = 69) also reported their general experiences with snakebite in hospitals. Hospitals often lacked essential resources to treat snakebite victims, and 44% (95% CI = 30–59%) of snakebite victims arrived at a hospital only three or more hours after the bite. A significant percentage of snakebite victims experienced lasting damage (32%, 95% CI = 20–47%) or death (14%, 95% CI = 7–25%). Snakebite outcomes could likely be improved if hospitals were universally and consistently equipped with the essential resources to treat snakebite victims, such as antivenoms. Educational interventions aimed at communities should focus on discouraging tourniquet use and tampering with the wound. Collaboration between the allopathic and traditional health system could further boost snakebite outcomes because traditional healers are often the first health workers to see snakebite victims. Full article

Background: Pakistan is the world’s sixth most populated country, with a population of approximately 208 million people. Despite this, just 25% of legitimate couples say they have used modern contraceptive methods. A large body of literature has indicated that sexual satisfaction is a complex and multifaceted concept, since it involves physical and cultural components. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of influencing factors in terms of contraceptive self-efficacy (CSE), contraceptive knowledge, and spousal communication on the adoption of modern contraceptive methods for family planning (FP) under the moderating role of perceived barriers. Methods: Data were collected using an adopted questionnaire issued to married women of reproductive age belonging to the Rawalpindi and Neelum Valley regions in Pakistan. The sample consisted of 250 married women of reproductive age. SPSS was used to analyze the respondents’ feedback. Results: The findings draw public attention towards CSE, contraceptive knowledge, and spousal communication, because these factors can increase the usage of modern methods for FP among couples, leading to a reduction in unwanted pregnancies and associated risks. Regarding the significant moderation effect of perceived barriers, if individuals (women) are highly motivated (CSE) to overcome perceived barriers by convincing their husbands to use contraceptives, the probability to adopt modern contraceptive methods for FP practices is increased. Conclusions: Policymakers should formulate strategies for the involvement of males by designing male-oriented FP program interventions and incorporating male FP workers to reduce communication barriers between couples. Future research should address several other important variables, such as the desire for additional child, myths/misconceptions, fear of side effects, and partner/friend discouragement, which also affect the adoption of modern contraceptive methods for FP practices. Full article

According to Robert McSweeney, in light of a new study: “Conditions in the GCC could become so hot and humid in the coming years that staying outside for more than six hours will become difficult”. He is a climate analyst at CARBON BRIEF, a nonprofit temperature and climate analysis group. He also states that changes there can help give us an idea of what the rest of the world can expect if we do not reduce the emissions that pollute homes and factories. Because of the high temperatures in GCC countries, the effect of heat stress is very high there, which discourages shoppers and pedestrians from shopping in the open area due to the physical exertion and high risks faced by people and workers. Heat stress peaks in most Arab Gulf countries from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. during the summer season. Heat stress is increasingly an obstacle to economic efficiency in these countries. This work designs and develops a robot that tracks shoppers and provides a cool stream of air directly around them during shopping in open areas to reduce the effect of heat stress. The robot enables us to cool the temperature around customers in the market to increase comfort. In this project, a robot was designed and manufactured to track a specific person and cool the air around him through a cool stream of air generated by the air conditioner installed inside the robot. We used a Raspberry Pi camera sensor to detect the target person and interact with a single-board computer (Raspberry Pi 3) to accomplish this design and the prototype. Raspberry Pi controls the air-conditioning robot to follow the movement of the target person. We used image processing to discover the target shopper, the control system, and then guide the bot. In the meantime, the robot must also bypass any potential obstacles that could prevent its movement and cause a collision. We made a highly efficient design that can synchronize between the software algorithm and the mechanical platform of the robot. This work is merely the combination of a cool stream of air and a robot that follows a human. Full article

The struggles of China’s gay sex workers—men who sell sex to other men—illustrate how the multi-layered stigma that they experience acts as a form of necropolitical power and an instrument of the state’s discrimination against gay sex workers who are living with HIV. One unintended side effect of this state power is the subsequent reluctance by medical professionals to care for gay sex workers who are living with HIV, and discrimination from Chinese government officers. Data obtained from 28 gay sex workers who are living with HIV provide evidence that the necropower of stigma is routinely exercised upon the bodies of gay sex workers. This article examines how the necropolitics of social death and state-sanctioned stigma are manifested throughout China’s health system, discouraging gay sex workers from receiving health care. This process uses biopolitical surveillance measures as most of gay sex workers come from rural China and do not enjoy urban hukou, thus are excluded from the medical health care system in urban China. Public health priorities demand that the cultured scripts of gendered Chinese citizenship must reevaluate the marking of the body of gay sex workers as a non-entity, a non-human and socially “dead body.” Full article