Economic fluctuations at national or jurisdictional levels affect workforce numbers and working pace, meaning they are significantly associated with occupational injury and fatality rates and can be used as leading indicators that drive prevention strategies, a unique study has found.
Workers who don't believe they are provided with adequate PPE are at risk of post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions that can erode their ability to work safely, a study of service personnel operating in COVID-19-like environments has shown.
With the dramatic swing to working-from-home arrangements and new work technologies because of the COVID-19 pandemic, a Comcare "emerging evidence alert" has highlighted new research on the connection between technology acceptance, engagement and wellbeing.
About half of all manual handling tasks require potentially hazardous pushing and pulling motions. Physical therapy experts have identified optimal methods to reduce spinal load and prevent musculoskeletal injuries from these tasks.
A major review of studies covering more than 270,000 police personnel, including from Australia, has found police are at greater risk of poor mental health and risky drinking than previously thought, highlighting the importance of stigma-reduction strategies and continuous rather than reactive "psychoeducation".
A sweeping review has highlighted the link between prolonged sitting and standing at work and lower limb venous diseases like varicose veins and potentially deadly deep vein thrombosis, which the researchers say warrants intervention.
An international academy of leading occupational and environmental health experts has called for employers of all sizes to take all necessary steps to protect workers in the COVID-19 pandemic, which include appointing an "infection control officer", prioritising higher order controls and reducing exposure to dust and fumes, which increase the severity of infection.
Employers can reduce work stressors by implementing tailor-made stress management action plans targeting specific demands and streamlining processes, according to European researchers who have outlined a five-step program.
A significant proportion of adult asthma cases can be attributed to workplace triggers and workers can develop the illness in as little as two years, a US study spanning five decades has found. The researchers say the results underscore the need for employers to reduce exposures and monitor staff.
Workplace policies and programs that drive home the broad safety repercussions of turning up to work with a hangover, and impaired coordination, are far more likely to reduce risky drinking behaviours than warnings on the impact of alcohol on individuals' health, a study of NSW workers suggests.
