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This cross-sectional study aimed to assess working conditions and renal function among female rice farmers in Nan Province, Thailand. Purposive random sampling was used to select participants who met the inclusion criteria. Data were collected from 65 female rice farmers using in-depth interviews. A walk-through survey was performed to examine hazards in the rice farm and a dipstick test was used for urinalysis. The results demonstrated that all rice farming stages contained risks from physical, chemical, biological and ergonomic hazards and that no measures had been implemented to protect participants’ health from these risks. The screening test results showed low urinary pH (5–6) in 54 women (83.0%), but high urinary specific gravity (1.030) in 25 women (38.5%). Participants’ urine contained leukocytes in 15 women (23.1%), protein in 14 women (21.5%) and blood in 13 women (20%). This study results suggest that farming activities affect female rice farmers’ health and safety. Urinalysis dipstick tests, which can be administered at the local public health promoting hospital, should be used to assess the occupational health status. The results will be useful for health surveillance and follow-up of the participants. These preliminary findings need to be confirmed in a larger study including non-farmers.

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Background: The number of female workers in Indonesia has increased and female workers have been discovered to be very vulnerable to several hazards and health problems in the workplace environment linked to their menstrual cycle and pregnancy. Therefore, this study was conducted to analyze risk factors associated with pregnancy disorders in female workers. Design and Methods: The research was conducted through the use of a cross-sectional design with 307 female workers using simple random sampling. Furthermore, a descriptive analysis was conducted to describe the conditions of the respondents during pregnancy to childbirth process. Results: The results showed 45% of respondents had pregnancy disorders, 16% had miscarriages, and despite the fact most of the prenatal care processes was assisted by doctors or midwives, 2.6% of the respondents consulted Traditional Birth Attendants, who were also recorded and was found to account for 2.9% of the deliveries. Moreover, the risk factors associated with pregnancy disorders include vibrations (P=0.004), irritants (P=0.002) and repetitive works (P=0.009). Conclusions: It is recommended that companies should provide maternal and child health protection and control for any risk associated with female workers. Significance for public health Female workers possess abilities different from those of their male colleagues and have been reported to be very sensitive to some hazards in the workplace environment such as noise, heat, dust, and vibration. This paper describes the risk factors associated with pregnancy disorders in female workers before, during, and after pregnancy. Such disorders include heavy or irregular menstrual bleeding, premenstrual syndrome, dysmenorrheal disorder, and menstrual cycle disorder.

Objectives Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) may develop with repetitive and forced movements of the hands and wrists. In this study, we have aimed to evaluate whether the frequency of CTS is increased amongst female hairdressers as compared with unemployed women or not. Besides, we have also analyzed whether the functionality and pain intensity levels amongst female hairdressers with CTS are different from the ones of unemployed women with CTS or not. Material and Methods The consecutive female hairdressers and unemployed women who had referred to our electroneuromyography (ENMG) laboratory for the upper extremity nerve conduction studies were included. They were evaluated in terms of clinical and ENMG findings, socio-demographic characteristics, functionality and pain intensity levels determined with the Boston CTS Questionnaire and visual analog scale (VAS). Results In this study, 110 women (70 female hairdressers and 40 unemployed women) were included. The frequency of CTS among hairdressers (74.3%) was higher than the one of the unemployed control group (55%) (p = 0.032). We detected that as the time period of occupation in hairdressing increased, the risk of developing CTS also increased among hairdressers (p < 0.001). Additionally, pain intensity and functional loss levels were higher for hairdressers with CTS than those for the control group with CTS (p = 0.005, p < 0.001, p = 0.028, respectively). Conclusions The frequency of CTS is elevated for female hairdressers with respect to the unemployed women as in many other occupations requiring forced or repetitive hand movements. Besides, the occupational exposure in hairdressing also results in more elevated pain intensity and functional loss levels related with CTS as compared with the unemployed subjects. Int J Occup Med Environ Health 2018;31(3):333–339

The paper outlines the data obtained in the course of long-term research dedicated to studying the extent to which re-productive system pathologies in workers with high-risk occupations are occupationally induced. Their peculiarity is joint impacts of various occupational factors (for example, impacts exerted by chemicals together with physical and biological factors, and labor hardness and intensity as well) on a female body. Our research goal was to examine the extent to which reproductive system pathologies in workers with high-risk occupations were occupationally induced. To achieve it, we applied statistical estimate of correlation between health disorders and work. Our occupational group included a number of occupations with harmful or hazardous working conditions in civil en-gineering, metallurgy, chemical industry, polymer-processing industry, and health care as well. As a rule, working condi-tions class of workers from the examined groups varied from 3.1 to 3.3; and occupation with permissible working conditions were used as a comparative group. The research results revealed that there are certain occupations with high risk of reproductive health disorders evolvement and infants development pathologies evolvement. They are: – model makers and checkers in civil engineering and crane operators at a metallurgic plant; – analysts at chemical analysis laboratories, chemical engineers in chemical industry (including petrochemical plants, polymer-processing plants, and organic synthesis plants); – surgeons, obstetrician-gynecologists, midwives, surgical nurses working in in-patient departments. Estimate of correlation and occupational dependence of reproductive system diseases on working conditions revealed that women with harmful working conditions (3.1–3.3 hazard class) had defective pregnancies or labor pathologies which had strong and average correlation with working conditions. Health disorders in newborns were estimated as per very strong corre-lation with mother's work. Thus, we can state that a mother occupational risk induction for a child health is fundamentally proved. On the basis of the obtained results we rank female workers with 3 class 2 harm degree working conditions as having an occupation with high risks of reproductive health disorders. We worked out an algorithm aimed at managing these risks; it should be applied in order to lower occupational risks for reproduction in female workers.

Sadika Akhter,1,2 Shannon Rutherford,1 Feroza Akhter Kumkum,2 David Bromwich,1 Iqbal Anwar,2 Aminur Rahman,2 Cordia Chu1 1Centre for Environment and Population Health, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD, Australia; 2International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh Background: Traditionally, women in Bangladesh stayed at home in their role as daughter, wife, or mother. In the 1980s, economic reforms created a job market for poor, uneducated rural women in the ready-made garment industry, mostly located in urban areas. This increased participation in paid work has changed the gender roles of these women. Women’s earnings support their family, but they are also separated from their children, with impacts on their mental health and well-being. This study explores the lived experience of women in Bangladesh working in the ready-made garment industry as they strive to be mothers and family providers, often in high-stress conditions.Methods: The study was conducted in two industrial areas of Dhaka over 8 months. Data collection included a literature review, 20 in-depth interviews with married female garment workers, and 14 key-informant interviews with officials from the Ministry of Labour and Employment, health-service providers within the garment factories, factory managers, and representatives of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association. The data collected were analyzed thematically.Results: Poverty was a key motivating factor for female migrant workers to move from rural areas. Their children stay in their village with their grandparents, because of their mothers’ work conditions and the lack of childcare. The women reported stress, anxiety, restlessness, and thoughts of suicide, due to the double burden of work and separation from their children and family support. Further, they cannot easily access government hospital services due to their long work hours, and the limited medical services provided in the workplace do not meet their needs.Conclusion: In order to improve the health and well-being of female garment workers, steps should be taken to develop health interventions to meet the needs of this important group of workers who are contributing significantly to the economic development of the country. Keywords: female workers, Bangladesh, ready-made garment industry, gender, health, work&nbsp

Purpose: The present study determined female workers’ experiences and preferences to improve the workplace anemia prevention program in Indonesia by studying their perception of anemia, as well as its risk factors and control. Methods: This qualitative study was conducted using focus group discussions (FGDs) to assess female workers’ understanding about anemia and possible improvements for workplace-based intervention in a factory located in East Jakarta, Indonesia. Participants were consisted of 14 FGD groups according to anemia status and potential affecting characteristics, including marital status, ethnicity, religion, and frequency of medical consultations. A semistructured questionnaire was used to determine participants’ ideas and experiences of anemia control. Results: A total of 14 FGDs were conducted including 105 female workers who participated in this study. More than half of the participants showed a good understanding of the signs and symptoms of anemia. They expected the company to improve the factory health service by improving accessibility and affordability of food and controlling hazardous substances considered risk factors of anemia in the workplace. Conclusion: Female workers have valuable experience and ideas that should be considered to improve workplace-based anemia intervention. They proposed improvement of workplace-based health services such as improving factory canteen and clinics services and controlling potential anemia risk hazards in the workplace.

Background This study assessed the association between shift work and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) level, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), in female workers in electronics manufacturing services (EMS). Methods Female EMS workers who received special medical examinations for workers in Gyeongnam, Korea between January 2017 and December 2017 were enrolled in this study. Their age, marital status, education level, alcohol consumption, smoking habit, regular exercise, quality of sleep, work stress, and depression were investigated, and blood tests were conducted. The t- and χ2 tests were conducted to compare the general and biochemical characteristics between daytime and shift worker groups. Age-adjusted partial correlation analysis was performed to examine the linear relationship between hs-CRP level and other risk factors for CVDs. In addition, the difference in hs-CRP levels according to work schedule was analyzed by ANCOVA after adjusting for variables that could affect the hs-CRP level. Results Although the average hs-CRP levels did not differ significantly between daytime and shift workers (0.92 ± 1.87 and 1.07 ± 2.20 mg/dL, respectively), shift workers tended to show a higher hs-CRP level (p = 0.067). After adjusting for variables that can affect the hs-CRP level, the estimated average hs-CRP level was significantly higher in shift workers (1.325 ± 0.156 mg/dL) than that in daytime workers (0.652 ± 0.350 mg/dL) (p = 0.003). Conclusions The results of this study identified a relationship between shift work and hs-CRP level increase in women. Because multiple studies have reported associations between increased hs-CRP and CVD, follow-up of hs-CRP may help early detection of CVD in shift workers.

Background: Vietnam has experienced a strong wave of migrants to urban and industrialized areas. This is a challenge for both local and national governments, which need to address the problems of the poor and socially marginalized, including providing housing for rural-to-urban migrants. Poor housing and the economic burden of house renting are increasingly recognized as determinants of both physical and mental health. Objectives: This paper examined the association between renting accommodation and income satisfaction and living conditions of female workers in light manufacturing industries in Vietnam. Methods: A cross-sectional study was implemented with quantitative survey of 2,818 female workers in 10 light manufacturing factories in 3 industrial zones by a self-administered questionnaire. Results: Over 38% of female workers had to rent accommodation. The average expense for accommodation, water and electricity accounted for 30.1% of renters’ income, which is 7.2% (CI 95%, 5.3–9.3%) higher than for non-renters. A higher proportion of renters than non-renters considered their income was unstable and insufficient for living costs. In addition, only 7.2% of renters reported that their living conditions were suitable, notably lower than non-renters (22.4%). Conclusion: The study showed the economic burden of renting accommodation on workers’ income satisfaction and living conditions. The findings have implications for an adequate housing access strategy for workers including the integration of housing development in the planning and development of industrial zones and factories.

Associations between several occupational characteristics and obesity are not fully elucidated in Korean working populations, especially in females. This study investigated associations between occupational characteristics and overweight/obesity among Korean women. Data on 2090 female workers (the mean age was 38.8 &plusmn, 0.2 years), extracted from Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys in 2010&ndash, 2015, were analyzed and showed that 6.8% of subjects were underweight, 50.8% had normal weight, 20.1% were overweight, and 22.2% were individuals with obesity. Multiple regression analysis was performed to examine associations between occupational characteristics and overweight/obesity, after controlling for demographic, behavioral, and health-related characteristics. The reference group was normal weight. Working hours were strongly associated with overweight/obesity. The odds ratio (OR) of obesity in women who worked for &ge, 60 hours per week was 2.68 (95% confidence interval: [CI] 2.13&ndash, 3.36) compared with those who worked for &lt, 40 hours. Night/shift workers were 1.21 times (95% confidence interval: [CI] 1.01&ndash, 1.45) more likely to experience obesity than day or evening workers. In conclusion, obesity rates increase among female workers with longer working hours and those who work at night or in shifts. Occupational characteristics should be considered in the prevention of obesity among working women.

Parents returning to work after the arrival of a new son or daughter is an important question for understanding the trajectory of people's lives and professional careers amid current debates about gender equality and work-life balance (WLB). Interestingly, current research concludes that general WLB practices at the workplace may be necessary in the specific case of women returning to work after childbirth because of the particular maternal and infant factors involved. However, WLB practices as a flexible arrangement may work against women because they may be viewed as a lack of organizational commitment. Therefore, research on this topic could benefit from considering supervisor support as a complement of such practices, but previous research has analyzed WLB and supervisor support separately and scarcely. To fill this gap in the literature, we use two sub-samples of 664 female employees and 749 male employees with children under the age of one from 27 European countries participating in the 6th European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS-2015) to study the impact of perceived WLB on European women's perceived well-being after childbirth, in contrast with previous literature. We also analyze the impact of perceived supervisor support (SS) and its interaction with perceived WLB on women's well-being after childbirth, and explore differences with men after childbirth, a collective underexplored by the literature. We find significant gender differences on the relative impact of WLB, SS, and their interaction on perceived job well-being. Our results have important implications for human resource practices in organizations. In particular, they suggest that gendered WLB practices should be encouraged, and stress the relevance of the human factor over human resource practices in addressing the difficulties that women returning to work face after childbirth.

Objective: Health is nothing but a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing not merely the absence of disease. Health depends on life style and requires the promotion of healthy life style. Health is both a consequence of an individual’s life style and factors in determining it. Working pattern or type of work has long been known to influence human health specially. The present study was under taken to evaluate the body status and physiological stress and occupational health hazards of the female workers.Methods: According to the work load the working group was classified in to low physical work group (LPWG) and the moderate type of physical work group (MPWG). Eighty women (forty in each group), excluding pregnant women, were selected from the municipal area of Bhilai, Chhattisgarh, India, aged between 20 to 40 years. The anthropometric measurement and skin fold thickness were taken, from which the body mass index (BMI) and fat percentage were determined. The blood pressure of all the subjects was taken by mercury sphygmomanometer at resting condition. The occupational health hazards were determined by questionnaire technique.Result: The result indicates that the MPWG workers suffer in significantly (p

Background Menstrual problems can significantly impact daily and work life. In reaction to a shrinking population, the Japanese government is encouraging more women to participate in the labor force. Actual success in achieving this aim, however, is limited. Specifically, participation in the workforce by women during their reproductive years is impacted by their health, which involves not only work conditions, but also traditional family circumstances. Therefore, it is important to further assess and gather more information about the health status of women who work during their reproductive years in Japan. Specifically, women’s health can be represented by menstruation status, which is a pivotal indicator. In this study, we assessed the association between short rest periods in work intervals and menstruation and other health status indicators among female workers in Japan. Methods Study participants were recruited from the alumnae of a university, which provided a uniform educational level. All 9864 female alumnae were asked to join the survey and 1630 (17%) accepted. The final sample of study participants (n = 505) were aged 23–43 years, had maintained the same job status for at least 1 year, and were not shift workers, had no maternal status, and did not lack any related information. The participants were divided into two groups according to interval time, with 11 h between end of work and resumption of daily work as a benchmark. This interval time was based on EU regulations and the goal set by the government of Japan. Health outcomes included: menstrual cycle, dysmenorrhoea symptoms, anxiety regarding health, and satisfaction in terms of health. Multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for health indexes in association with interval time by adjusting for confounding variables that included both psychosocial and biological factors. Results We compared the health status of women in the workforce with and without a sufficient interval time of 11 h/day. Workers who had a short interval time had a significantly higher prevalence of anxiety about health and dissatisfaction with their health. For menstruation status, only abnormal menstruation cycles were observed more often among workers in the short interval group than those of the long interval group. However, this association disappeared when biological confounding factors were adjusted in a multivariable regression model. Dysmenorrhea symptoms did not show a statistically significant association with short interval time. Conclusions This study found a significant association between a short interval time of less than 11 h/day and subjective health indicators and the menstrual health status of women in the workforce. Menstrual health was more affected by biological factors than social psychological factors. A long work time and short interval time could increase worker anxiety and dissatisfaction and may deteriorate the menstrual cycle.

Background Bangladesh has made significant progress in reducing maternal mortality. Many factors have contributed to this; one is the socio-economic development of the country. The ready-made garment industry is at the forefront of this development creating employment for many women. However, the work environment has the potential to create health problems, particularly for vulnerable groups such as pregnant women. This paper explores perceptions of health problems during pregnancy of factory workers, in this important industry in Bangladesh. Methods This study was conducted in four factories using qualitative research methods to provide a view of pregnant workers’ health risks beyond a bio-medical approach. Data was collected through in-depth interviews of pregnant workers and observations of their homes and workplaces. Further, key informant interviews with factory health care providers, government officials and employers revealed different perspectives and experiences. Data was collected in the local language (Bengali), then transcribed and analysed using a framework analysis approach. Results Female workers reported that participation in paid work created an opportunity for them to earn money but pregnancy and the nature of the job, including being pressured to meet the production quota, pressure to leave the job because of their pregnancy and withholding of maternity benefits, cause stress, anxiety and may contribute to hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. This was confirmed by factory doctors who suggested that developing hypertensive disorders during pregnancy was influenced by the nature of work and stress. The employers seemed focused on profit and meeting quotas and the health of pregnant workers appeared to be a lower priority. This study found that the government lacks the resources to understand the extent of the problem or the level of compliance with maternity related regulations. Conclusions These results indicate the vulnerability of female workers to physical and mental stress at work and associations with their health problems during pregnancy. It identifies the deficiencies of family, workplace and health service support for these pregnant workers, highlighting the urgent need for government and non-government organisations to work with this important export industry to improve health surveillance and monitoring and the enforcement of existing laws to protect the rights and conditions of pregnant women.

Eight in ten female readymade garment (RMG) workers in Bangladesh suffer from anemia, a condition which damages both health and productivity. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a workplace nutrition program on anemia reduction in female RMG workers of Bangladesh. A quasi-experimental mixed method study was conducted on 1310 non-pregnant female RMG workers from four factories. Two types of intervention packages (A and C) were tested against their respective controls (B and D) over a 10-month period. Among factories that already provided lunch to workers with regular behavior change counseling (BCC), one intervention (A) and one control (B) factory were selected, and among factories that did not provide lunches to their workers but provided regular BCC, one intervention (C) and one control (D) factory were selected: (A) Lunch meal intervention package: daily nutritionally-enhanced (with fortified rice) hot lunch, once weekly iron-folic acid (IFA) supplement and monthly enhanced (with nutrition module) behavior change counseling (BCC) versus (B) Lunch meal control package: regular lunch and BCC, and (C) Non-meal intervention package: twice-weekly IFA and enhanced BCC versus (D) Non-meal control package: BCC alone. Body weight and capillary hemoglobin were measured. Changes in anemia prevalence were estimated by difference-in-difference (DID) method. Thematic analysis of qualitative in-depth interviews with RMG workers was performed and findings were triangulated. Anemia was reduced significantly in both lunch meal and non-meal intervention (A and C) group (DID: 32 and 12 percentage points, p: &lt, 0.001 and &lt, 0.05 respectively). The mean hemoglobin concentration also significantly increased by 1 gm/dL and 0.4 gm/dL in both A and C group (p: &lt, 0.001 respectively). Weight did not change in the intervention groups (A and C) but significantly increased by more than 1.5 kg in the comparison groups (B and D). The knowledge of different vitamin and mineral containing foods and their benefits was increased significantly among all participants. Workplace nutrition programs can reduce anemia in female RMG workers, with the greatest benefits observed when both nutritionally enhanced lunches and IFA supplements are provided.

Background Workers working in small-scale milling industries are exposed to a variety of contaminants that can affect both the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. Aim The purpose of this research was to evaluate the consequence of flour dust exposure on the cardiopulmonary functions of female flour mill workers in two Nigerian food milling markets. Participants and methods A total of 200 participants were engaged for the study, comprising 100 female flour mill workers (test group) and 100 female control participants. The blood pressure measurement and pulse rate were determined, whereas the lung function was assessed using electronic spirometer. Data on respiratory symptoms and duration of exposure were collected using questionnaire. Results The most common symptoms reported by the workers was cough (75%), whereas 57% of the workers had symptoms of high blood pressure. Highly significant peak expiratory flow rate, forced vital capacity, and forced expiratory volume measured at the first second were lower significantly in the test patients relative to the control (P

Female workers of childbearing age (WUS) as a major of human resources in many agribusiness exposed to anemia. This study aims to improve the iron status of anemic WUS workers with low hemoglobin (Hb) levels, who work in a pineapple agribusiness by iron supplementation. This study was conducted two periods, using a double-blind randomized trial design. Subjects were divided into two treatment groups supplements, namely IF that was given iron + folic acid and MVM that was given multi vitamin and mineral containing 15 different vitamins and minerals including iron and folic acid. The subjects of period-1 were 25 married WUS (IF=13, MVM=12) and of period-2 were 15 single WUS (BF=7, MVM=8). Supplementation performed three times weekly for 10 weeks. After supplementation, the levels of Hb, haematocrit (Hc) and serum ferritin of BF-group increased, whereas there were declines in MVM-group. The increase in Hb and Hc in married WUS was higher than the single. However, their Hb was fallen down when supplementation was continued without supervision and getting down when not given the supplements anymore. Supplementation with iron is a must for WUS workers, because they are not able to increase their Hb if only rely on their food.

In recent years, one of the issues considered by scientists is the relationship between gender and informal relationship networks in workplaces. Optimize utilization of social networks to achieve better job position in a higher organizational level is in great importance for both men and women. Social supporting and interaction networks play important roles in a workplace including improving performance and decreasing stress as well as fatigue of workers. Hence it has been a subject to be researched. Network analysis is a new approach of studying social structures that investigates how surrounding structures of people, groups or organizations affect them and one of its most important features is changing the focus from people and their characteristics to their relationships. This paper using network analysis approach draws the informal relationship network of 153 male and female workers of Peyvand industrial company to answer 2 following questions: Are women engaged in informal relationship networks in workplaces with masculine job nature as well as men and are they put in proper position? 2- Is the job nature effective in forming informal relationships among men and women? Data are analyzed using UCINET and depicted by Netdraw Software and discussed in the conclusion.

Background: Cashew nut shell liquid contains 90% anacardic acid and 10% cardol. This liquid when comes in contact topically is said to have deleterious effects both orally and systemically. Aim: The present cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the prevalence of oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) among 600 cashew nut industrial workers in Kanyakumari district. Materials and Methods: Demographic data and tobacco habits were assessed using pretested questionnaire. Ranganathan K clinical grading system was used to examine OSMF. The data were assessed using SPSS version 11.5. Results: The overall prevalence of OSMF among the study population was 0.002%. Conclusion: The observation from this study clearly indicates that safe working environment prevents occupational hazards.

Background A positive association between maternal occupational exposure to pesticide and spontaneous abortion has been reported in some studies. Work in greenhouses may imply exposure of pregnant women to pesticides continuously and at elevated level. Methods A total of 717 women working in greenhouses provided information on 973 pregnancies, including 110 spontaneous abortions. These pregnancies were classified as exposed or not exposed according to maternal occupation, re-entry activities and application of pesticides in greenhouses during at least 1 month in the first trimester of pregnancy. The ORs for spontaneous abortion were estimated through a generalised estimate equations model for all orders of pregnancy together, and through a logistic regression model limited to first pregnancies. Results Increased risks of spontaneous abortion were found for maternal re-entry activities within 24 hr after pesticides were applied (all orders of pregnancy: OR 3.2, 95% CI 1.3–7.7; first pregnancies: OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.0–13.9) and for those who applied pesticides (all orders of pregnancy: OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.0–6.6; first pregnancies: OR 3.7, 95% CI 0.7–20,6) Conclusions The observed results support the hypothesis of an association between maternal work in greenhouses and spontaneous abortion. The main limitations of the study are lack of information on the specific chemicals used and the small number of pregnancies heavily exposed to pesticides. Am. J. Ind. Med. 51:290–295, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Urban outside workers, such as traffic police, are daily exposed to air pollutants and psychosocial stressors: for these workers, the working environment corresponds to the living environment of the general population. Studies in the literature have shown that immune parameters could be affected by chronic exposure to various chemical pollutants. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether occupational exposure to urban pollutants can cause alterations in NK, IL-2, IFN-γ and C3 plasma levels in female traffic police compared to a control group. After excluding subjects with the principal confounding factors, 86 female traffic police and 87 controls were matched by age, years of police work and habitual alcohol consumption. The distribution of NK values in female traffic police and controls was significantly different (p = 0.000); NK values above the upper limit of the normal laboratory range were observed in 23 female traffic police and in 2 controls (p = 0.000). IL-2 mean levels were higher in traffic police compared to controls, but the difference was not significant. The mean and the distribution of IFN-γ values in female traffic police and controls were not different. C3 mean levels were higher in female traffic police versus controls, but the difference was not significant. Considering that the subjects with the principal confounding factors were excluded from the study and that female traffic police and controls were matched by the above-mentioned variables, our results suggest that chronic occupational exposure to low doses of chemical stressors, which may interact with and add to psychosocial ones, can affect both innate and adaptative immunity.

Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of vascular, neurological and musculoskeletal disorders of the upper limb in a group of female workers performing either mechanical or hand sanding in the furniture industry (n=100) and in a control group of female office workers (n=100). A further aim was to study the possible adverse effects of exposure to a combination of vibration and ergonomic risk factors in female workers. Methods: All female workers underwent a medical interview and a complete physical investigation. The clinical diagnoses of Raynaud’s phenomenon and carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) were made according to international consensus criteria. Hand-transmitted vibration from orbital sanders was measured according to International Organization for Standardization (ISO) recommendations. Daily vibration exposure was assessed in terms of 8-h energy-equivalent frequency-weighted acceleration [A(8)] according to the European Directive on physical agents. Ergonomic load on the upper limbs was estimated by means of strain index methodology. Results: There was no significant difference in the prevalence of Raynaud’s phenomenon between the furniture workers (4%) and the controls (8%). The prevalence of CTS, peripheral sensorineural disturbances (after exclusion of CTS cases) and upper-limb musculoskeletal complaints was significantly greater in the furniture workers than in the controls. CTS was clinically diagnosed in 19% of the furniture workers and 8% of the controls. A log-binomial regression analysis showed that the occurrence of soft-tissue disorders of the upper limb increased significantly with the increase of both daily vibration exposure and the strain index score. It was estimated that the risk for CTS increased by a factor of 1.30 (95% CI 1.11–1.53) for each unit of increase in A(8) (ms−2), and by 1.09 (95% CI 1.02–1.15) for each unit of increase in the strain index score. Conclusions: Even though the cross-sectional design of this epidemiological study does not allow aetiological considerations, our findings suggest a significant association between occupational use of vibratory tools and soft-tissue disorders in the upper limbs of female workers. Quantitative estimation of vibration exposure and ergonomic stress showed that these physical risk factors seem to contribute in a multiplicative way to the occurrence of chronic nerve and musculoskeletal disorders in female workers operating hand-held vibrating tools in the furniture industry.

Men and women may be affected differently by the transition from central planning to a market economy and especially by the privatization and restructuring of state-owned enterprises. After briefly reviewing the international evidence on this issue, the author looks at the recent experience of Vietnam and the prospects of its new reform program. During the massive downsizing in Vietnam in the early 1990s, many more women than men were laid off. Women withdrew from the labor force in larger numbers than men after separation, but the difference nearly vanished after a year. Economic reforms were associated with a considerable decline in the gender gap in earnings, both in the state sector and outside it. Women are less likely to be retrenched in large numbers in the downsizing in the early part of this decade. Labor redundancies are concentrated in male-dominated sectors, such as mining, transport, and construction; redundancies are smaller in female-dominated sectors, such as footwear, textiles, and garments. Moreover, temporary and short-term contracts are more prevalent in female-dominated sectors, suggesting demand for women's work. Assistance programs for redundant workers have potential gender biases. The authors shows that separation packages defined as a multiple of earnings favor men more, while lump-sum packages favor women more. Packages based on seniority are roughly gender neutral, but require a substantially higher expenditure to reach the same acceptance rate as the other two.

Objectives This is the first research study to compare among female, non-smoker workers: (a) the exposure to benzene, toluene and xylenes (BTXs) in urban air during work in the street (traffic policewomen, TP) vs. work in vehicles (police drivers, PD); (b) the exposure to BTXs in urban environments (in street and in car) vs. rural environments (roadwomen, RW); (c) the values of blood benzene, urinary trans, trans muconic acid (t,t-MA) and urinary S-phenylmercapturic acid (S-PMA) in urban areas (in street and in car) vs . rural areas. Methods Passive personal samplings and data acquired using fixed monitoring stations located in different areas of the city were used to measure environmental and occupational exposure to BTXs during the work shift in 48 TP, 21 PD and 22 RW. In the same study subjects, blood benzene, t,t-MA and S-PMA were measured at the end of each work shift. Results Personal exposure of urban workers to benzene seemed to be higher than the exposure measured by the fixed monitoring stations. Personal exposure to benzene and toluene was (a) similar among TP and PD and (b) higher among urban workers compared to rural workers. Personal exposure to xylenes was (a) higher in TP than in PD and (b) higher among urban workers compared to rural workers. Blood benzene, t,t-MA and S-PMA levels were similar among TP and PD, although the blood benzene level was significantly higher in urban workers compared to rural workers. In urban workers, airborne benzene and blood benzene levels were significantly correlated. Conclusions Benzene is a human carcinogen, and BTXs are potential reproductive toxins at low dose exposures. Biological and environmental monitoring to assess exposure to BTXs represents a preliminary and necessary tool for the implementation of preventive measures for female subjects working in outdoor environments.

Background: Employees’ productivity is closely related with nutritional condition. Nutritional condition can be physically assessed by determining nutrition status. One’s nutrition status is directly influenced by nutrient intake. However, health and nutrition status of an employee in general have not got proper attention that lead to decreasing productivity. Productivity is not only influenced by nutrition status but also by psychological factor that involves motivation.Objectives: To identify association between nutrient intake, nutrition status and motivation and productivity of female workers at production department of Bakpia Pathuk 25 Factory Yogyakarta.Method: The study was a survey that used cross sectional design. Subject of the study were female workers at production department as many as 40 people taken through proportional stratified random sampling technique. Data of subject assessed were nutrient intake (energy, carbohydrate, fat, protein, and Fe), nutrition status, motivation, and productivity. Nutrient intake was assessed using food recall 24 hours within 4 days, nutrition status was specified using anthropometric approach using body mass index (weight/height), motivation was assessed through motivation questionnaire and productivity through quantity of production (raw bakpia) produced by the worker at a time observation (44 minutes for workers at crust production and 1 hour for workers at filing department) within 3 times observation.Result: The result of linear regression analysis showed that association between nutrient intake (energy, carbohydrate, fat, protein and Fe), nutrition status and productivity was r0.05 whereas between motivation and productivity was r=0.901; R2= 0.812; and p=0.000 for variables of wages, intake of energy, Fe and motivation and productivity.Conclusion: There was no significant association between nutrient intake (energy, carbohydrate, fat, protein and Fe) and nutrition status and productivity; there was signifiant association between motivation and productivity. Concurrently only motivation had significant association with productivity.

Objective This study aimed to determine identify any association between shift work and the metabolic syndrome by comparing the prevalence rates of the metabolic syndrome in shift work groups and daytime work groups for female workers. Methods Based on data from health examinations carried out from April to December of 2012, we selected as our subjects 254 female workers from the Daegu area Dyeing Industrial Complex. We diagnosed the metabolic syndrome using the examination results, and information about age, whether or not they did shift work, job type, smoking habits, drinking habits, exercise habits, and past medical history was collected through self-administered questionnaire surveys and face-to-face interviews. The variables found in a univariate analysis to be significant in the occurrence of the metabolic syndrome - age, drinking habits, exercise habits, and shift work - were included in a logistic regression analysis of the risk of the metabolic syndrome for female workers. Results The prevalence rates of the metabolic syndrome for the total group of study subjects was 11.8%, for daytime workers was 2.8%, and for shift workers was 15.3%. A logistic regression analysis of the odds of the metabolic syndrome for female workers was conducted that included factors associated with the occurrence of the metabolic syndrome: age, drinking habits, exercise habits, and shift work. The results revealed that the odds ratio of the metabolic syndrome in the shift work group, 6.30 (95% CI 1.24-32.15), was significantly higher when compared with the daytime work group. Conclusion Shift work appears to have an association with the metabolic syndrome in female workers. Accordingly, we believe that the attention of government agencies and business owners is needed together with the individual practice of health behaviors to manage the metabolic syndrome for the prevention of cardiovascular disease in female shift workers.