Healthy workplaces? A survey of Massachusetts employers

Details

• Personal Author:
  Davis, Letitia ; Erck E ; Nobrega S ; Punnett, Laura ; Tremblay PA
• Description:
  Purpose. This study examines worksite health promotion (WHP) and occupational health and safety (OHS) activities by Massachusetts employers, and the extent to which workplaces with programming in one domain were more likely to have the other as well. Design. In 2008, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health surveyed a stratified sample of Massachusetts worksites. Setting. A mailed questionnaire to be completed by workplace representatives. Subjects. Massachusetts worksites returning the questionnaire. Measures. Questionnaire items about worksite characteristics, WHP, and some OHS practices. Analysis. We scored levels of WHP and OHS activity; examined the relationship between activities in the two domains by employer characteristics; and assessed self-reported coordination between them. Results. The 890 responding worksites had higher scores for OHS (mean = 48% of practices, SD = 24%) than WHP (mean = 20%, SD = 12%). The difference between these scores varied by a factor of two across industry sectors and was smallest for workforces of 100+ employees (p = .001). Employers with no unionized workers reported fewer activities in both domains (p < .0001). Only 28% of respondents reported always/often coordinating OHS and WHP efforts; these organizations had more activities overall in both domains. Conclusion. Larger and unionized workplaces in Massachusetts were more likely to offer both WHP and OHS programming. Self-reported coordination was somewhat associated with more activity in both domains, although levels of WHP activity varied widely. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Health Promotion Occupational Health Safety Stress, Psychological Workplace
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Worksite Wellness Health Promotion Job Stress Management Personnel Prevention Research Total Worker Health Work Environment Work Operations Work Organization Workplace Monitoring Worksite Health Promotion

  More +
• ISSN:
  0890-1171
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  390-400
• Volume:
  27
• Issue:
  6
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20042911
• Citation:
  Am J Health Promot 2013 Jul/Aug; 27(6):390-400
• Contact Point Address:
  Patricia A. Tremblay, MS, Research Assistant, Department of Work Environment, University of Massachusetts Lowell, 1 University Avenue, Lowell, MA 01854
• Email:
  Patricia_tremblay@student.uml.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2013
• NORA Priority Area:
  Healthcare and Social Assistance
• Performing Organization:
  University of Massachusetts, Lowell
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20060701
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Health Promotion
• End Date:
  20210831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:fbb6f8b57378ebc2ed2064b7658925a6bd21941bcb43fd0f49e6bd82aa44a144bc56bcbe6cbf71bac3a1af6fd656fd588fbf70b3c0a644d75b19d7f5979a2611
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/194979/cdc_194979_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.09 MB ]