A quarter of European employees suffer ill health caused by
work
New research from the European Foundation for Improvement of
Living and Working Conditions has found that older people in manual
roles, women and employees without fixed-term contracts are among
the most vulnerable workers in Europe.
Among the most interesting findings was the fact that a quarter
of European workers feel that work is having an adverse effect on
their health. In terms of the types of risks faced, 63.5% of
workers said they are forced to perform repetitive hand or arm
movements, 15.3% are exposed to hazardous substances and 46% are
forced to adopt painful, or tiring positions for at least a quarter
of their working time. Exposure to vibration among skilled manual
workers has increased by 10% over the last 10 years.
Asked if they would be able to continue doing their job after the
age of 60, less than half of manual workers said yes, compared with
60% of all workers.
The Director of the European Trade Union Institute's health &
safety department said the survey shows that the long-term impact
of work on health may be more worrying than its immediate effects.
Women who predominantly work in jobs and sectors where the
immediate consequences of work are less noticeable lose any
advantage looked at over a full career.
He pointed out that with debates raging in several European
countries – including the UK – on retirement age and employment of
older workers, extending working life very much depends on the type
of work involved. He said, "For the least-favoured groups, the
build-up of poor working conditions over a lifetime often makes it
a physical impossibility to keep working. The way things are, a
building worker, cleaner, or call-centre worker, for example, will
have difficulty keeping their job and their health after the age of
50 or 55. Adjustment schemes for older workers will not be enough
given the build-up of ill health throughout working life."