Work Ability Index (WAI) and Its Association with Psychosocial Factors in One of the Petrochemical Industries in Iran

Abstract

as job insecurity, skill discretion, job strain and social support play an important role in maintaining work ability. A positive combination of "psychosocial characteristics" of the job with "individual resources" can promote work ability in such occupations. Work ability is a multifaceted and multidetermined concept not only associated with health but also with competence, values, the working environment and social relations 1) . The level of work ability in the working population can predict both future permanent disability and duration of sick leave absences 2,3) . So far, a large variety of studies have addressed determinants of work ability in occupational populations with predominantly physical demands at work. From these studies, it is known that WAI in such occupations is influenced by various factors like health problems, lifestyles, individual characteristics and many work-related risk factors [4][5][6] . Among the work-related risk factors, Alavinia 7) showed a strong association between psychosocial and physical factors and impairment of work ability.However, a few researches identified a number of psychosocial factors in the work environment as risk factors for work ability. Tuomi 8,9) showed that dissatisfaction with supervisor's attitude, lack of freedom, decrease in recognition and esteem and role ambiguities at work were associated with impaired work ability among municipal workers. Similarly, lack of support at work, poor possibilities to control one's own work and poor management were also associated with a lower WAI among construction workers and home care workers 7,10) . Although the relationship between work ability and some psychosocial factors has been described in In recent decades, work ability index (WAI) has been a common practical tool to measure individuals' work ability in many European, Asian and South American countries. However, there is no study concerning work ability in Iran. The aim of this study was to determine the work ability index in an Iranian petrochemical job setting and to examine its relationship with psychosocial factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 420 male workers in various occupations. Work ability was evaluated using the WAI questionnaire developed by FIOH; the Job content questionnaire (JCQ) was used to assess psychosocial factors. Results: The mean WAI score was 39.1 (SD=5.7) among workers in the studied petrochemical industry. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed a significant association between mean WAI score and age, job tenure, educational level, rest and sleep status and vocational education. Moreover, the results showed that skill discretion, coworker support and supervisor support were positively associated with the mean WAI score. On the other hand, it was inversely associated with job demands, job strain and job insecurity. Conclusions: This study was the first research to determine WAI in an important industry in Iran. Overall, work ability was in the "Good" category among the workers in the studied field. On the...

Work Ability of the Personnel of a Petrochemical Company and the Relationship Between Age and Physical Activities

“…In addition, the results showed that people with physically demanding jobs, compared with those in mentally demanding jobs, underestimated their current work ability (the first dimension of WAI questionnaire). This finding was consistent with the findings reported by Finnish and Iranian researchers (6,14,23). With increasing age, the work ability of workers in physically demanding jobs reduces more than the workers in mentally demanding jobs (7).…”

“…The differences observed between the results of this study and those of previous ones may be due to differences in several factors such as work environment, life style, nature of the job and mean age of the workers. Ergonomic corrections in the workstations and work environments was one of the most positive factors in the studied workplace which had a significant impact on maintaining the work ability of the personnel and thus their WAI was placed in a good range (6,7). In the current study, the WAI had little relationship with age; although some of the participants were younger, they had lower work ability than the older ones (aged over 45 years).…”

“…In this regard, studies have shown that these people own the highest level of depression (22). Studies conducted by Parker et al and Mazloumi et al had similar results (6,19). The mean work ability of individuals with physically demanding jobs was 41.8 and 43 in the subjects with mentally demanding jobs.…”

“…The concept of work ability describes the capacities and capabilities of people in terms of physical, psychological and social demands of work. Work ability is the result of an interaction between individual resource (physical, psychological and social) and work demands combined with environmental, social and organizational factors (6,7). It can be said that the work ability is a descriptive term which defines the workforce associated with physical, social and psychological demands of work in a workplace (8).…”

Agentes de limpeza terceirizados: entre o ressentimento e o reconhecimento

“…A condição de vulnerabilidade 23 Considerando o pouco tempo de trabalho, este ICT é preocupante, embora não se possa afirmar que a perda da capacidade para o trabalho tenha relação com somente este último emprego das agentes de limpeza. No entanto, cabe refletir sobre a capacidade prejudicada para o trabalho apresentada por 27, 27% das participantes, pois isto aponta para a necessidade de rever as condições de trabalho e propor melhorias a partir de atividades de promoção de saúde, conforme proposto por Tuomi et al 22 e Silva et al 15 .…”