Work profiles of older employees in Germany-results from the lidA-cohort study
- PDF / 1,166,002 Bytes
- 14 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 75 Downloads / 182 Views
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Open Access
Work profiles of older employees in Germany-results from the lidA-cohort study Hans Martin Hasselhorn*† , Michael Stiller†, Jean-Baptist du Prel and Melanie Ebener
Abstract Background: This study investigates whether a typology of work exposure can be established among older workers in Germany. Work exposure comprises physical work, working time quality, work intensity, skills & discretion, social environment, leadership, continued education, earnings and work prospects. Methods: Latent profile analysis was conducted on a representative sample of the socially insured workforce in Germany born in 1959 or 1965 (N = 6277). Seven year-prospective associations between the typology and workrelated outcomes (physical and mental health, work ability and work-privacy-conflict) were investigated to establish the distinctness of the profiles. Results: Five profiles were identified: “Poor Quality” (19%), “Relaxed Manuals” (30%), “Strained non-Manuals” (16%), “Smooth Running” (33%) and “High Flying” (3%). These profiles exhibited diverging patterns of association with the selected outcomes, thus representing qualitatively distinct subgroups of older workers in Germany. Conclusions: We conclude that a typological approach may broaden the understanding of the ageing work force and the complex interplay of the overall work situation with outcomes of high individual and social relevance such as health, work ability and employment. The five work profiles identified in this study may constitute crucial clusters needed to reliably mirror today’s over-all work exposure patterns in the older work force in Germany. They may allow for the comprehensible monitoring of quality of work and personal life among the older work force during their last working years and their transition to retirement in current times of extending working lives. Keywords: Latent profile analysis, Older worker, Work exposure, Working conditions, Health, Work ability
Background In 2008, 28% of the working population in Germany were aged 50 years or more, ten years later, the proportion has increased to 40% [1]. This trend has not reached its climax yet, as German policy is concerned to keep older workers as long as possible in the labour market [2]. To evaluate the risks and potentials of extended working lives in the older work force, it is of relevance to know and understand this heterogeneous group in its over-all working situation. The aim of this * Correspondence: [email protected] † Hans Martin Hasselhorn and Michael Stiller are equal contributors and joint first authors Department of Occupational Health Science, University of Wuppertal, Gaußstraße 20, 42119 Wuppertal, Germany
exploratory study is to identify an empirically derived typology of older workers in Germany according to work exposure. A common theoretical assumption is that during working life, occupational work factors are exerting a chronic impact on the individual workers’ resources such as health [3], attitudes and behaviour [4]. Classical social and o
Data Loading...
