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Due to demographic change, especially in Germany, society and the labour market have to face new challenges. While the group of elderly workers grows, their sustainability will become more important in future (Höhn, C., Mai, R., & Micheel, F. (2008). Demographic change in Germany. In I. Hamm, H. Seitz, & M. Werding (Eds.), Demographic change in Germany: The economic and fiscal consequences (pp. 9–33). Berlin: Springer; Dittrich, D., Büsch, V., & Micheel, F. (2011). Working beyond retirement age in Germany: The employee's perspective. In R. Ennals & R. Salomon (Eds.), Older workers in a sustainable society. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang), hence the focus of our study are older people as one potential workforce. Especially in combination with an ageing population and a later entrance into the labour market, a future shortfall of active workers can be assumed. Germany – as one example of such countries – has only a limited number of options that policy makers and companies can use in the coming decades. The aim of the paper is to analyse the German labour market and derive a typology of older workers within the subgroup of blue-collar workers. The typology uses the level of motivation and work abilty (low, medium and high) for clustering proxy. The older age group is too heterogeneous, and therefore the factor age is not a good proxy. With the help of the study, it is possible to identify, classify and enhance the motivation of workers at the end of their career. Finally, powerful recommendations for companies on how to involve and motivate elderly workers for longer periods of employment can be derived. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Organon (01026267) is the property of Revista Organon and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Lecturas de Economia is the property of Universidad de Antioquia, Facultad de Ciencias Economicas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We consider a model where firms differ in their productivity and workers are differentiated by skill and gender. A reduction in tariffs induces more productive firms to modernize their technology and enter the export market. New technologies involve computerized production processes and lower the need for physically demanding skills. As a result, the relative wage and employment of women improves in blue-collar tasks, but not in white-collar tasks. We empirically confirm these theoretical predictions using a panel of Mexican establishments and the tariff reductions associated with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Chronic low back pain can reduce engagement and participation in all areas of daily life. Previous research has focused on employment and vocational rehabilitation initiatives, with less attention paid to its impact on leisure. This paper examines the difficulties men with chronic low back pain experienced in the maintenance of their leisure activities. It explores the connection between leisure and social networks and the potential barriers to resuming leisure occupations due to chronic low back pain. Method: This ethnographic study examined the experiences of 11 men involved in a vocational rehabilitation programme in New South Wales, Australia. Data were gathered using participant observation and semi-structured interviews. Findings: Chronic low back pain has a critical impact on leisure occupations. It creates two barriers to a client's engagement in former leisure occupations: physical restrictions and financial barriers. Conclusion: The findings build on knowledge of how leisure impacts on social dimensions of health and wellbeing. Occupational therapists can play an important role in enabling people with chronic low back pain to re-engage in leisure. These interventions may reduce the social isolation experienced by individuals due to the loss of leisure activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the recruitment strategies of employers in the low-skilled segment of the labour market. We focus on low-skilled workers because they are overrepresented among jobless people and constitute the bulk of the clientele included in various activation and labour market programmes. A better understanding of the constraints and opportunities of interventions in this labour market segment may help improve their quality and effectiveness. On the basis of qualitative interviews with 41 employers in six European countries, we find that the traditional signals known to be used as statistical discrimination devices (old age, immigrant status and unemployment) play a somewhat reduced role, since these profiles are overrepresented among applicants for low skill positions. However, we find that other signals, mostly considered to be indicators of motivation, have a bigger impact in the selection process. These tend to concern the channel through which the contact with a prospective candidate is made. Unsolicited applications and recommendations from already employed workers emit a positive signal, whereas the fact of being referred by the public employment office is associated with the likelihood of lower motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Industrial Relations / Relations Industrielles is the property of Universite Laval, Department of Industrial Relations and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of mortality. Numerous investigations have linked occupational factors and CVD. Occupational factors such as overtime work have an enormous effect on the CVD risk of industrial workers. However, risk factors for CVD are not systematically reviewed in the workplace. The purpose of the paper is to review work-related risk factors for CVD. Methods: A systematic review of work-related CVD risk factors was performed, yielding 180 articles. All articles were assessed in relation to inclusion and exclusion criteria, resulting in 44 articles being reviewed. The sole inclusion criteria was work-related environmental factors and intra/inter-personal factors (psychosocial factors), which is based on the socioecological perspective. The articles were also assessed regarding the quality of each study using the scoring methods developed by Cesario et al. and Brown et al. Conclusion: The literature review demonstrated that work environment factors such as shift work, overtime work, and noise and chemical exposures; and psychosocial factors such as job stress, social support, and socioeconomic status cannot be explained or intervened by one single risk factor. Furthermore, certain occupational factors were shown to aggravate or attenuate other risk factors. The implication of these findings is to incorporate work-related environmental and psychosocial factors into assessment of the patient's CVD risks and intervention plan. Future research should also incorporate a well-defined conceptual framework to address the effects of work-related environmental and psychosocial factors on CVD among CVD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a field study in production areas of a vehicle manufacturing plant, where 106 male workers (aged from 20 to 63 years) were examined and interviewed by the authors. Aim of study was to identify relationships between specific physical worker capabilities and doses of mechanical exposures using self-developed standardized questionnaires as well as a battery of work-specific tests. The dependent variables are different 'physical capabilities', classified using a five-point rating scale with regard to the grade of limitation of the respective capability. Independent variables are 'age' and specific 'mechanical exposures'. Several exposures were combined and multiplied with their respective durations in order to determine doses on three different body regions - back, shoulder-neck and upper limbs. There are significant positive correlations between 'age' and 'dose of mechanical exposure on back/shoulder-neck/upper limbs region'. The analysis of the relationship between dose of exposure and different capabilities to lift or reposition loads (with variable weight) shows weak significant correlations for all three body regions. Data analysis shows no significant correlations between any dose of mechanical exposure and capabilities to work in awkward body postures. These results should be considered in age management programs when scheduling future employee assignments to workplaces, especially for production systems where manual handling tasks are dominant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of studies to better understand the complex physiological mechanism involved in regulating body weight have been conducted. More specifically, the hormones related to appetite, leptin and ghrelin, and their association to obesity have been a focus of investigation. Circadian patterns of these hormones are a new target of research. The behaviour of these hormones in individuals subject to atypical working times such as shiftwork remains unclear. Shiftwork is characterized by changes in biological rhythms and cumulative circadian phase changes, being associated with high rates of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Truck drivers, who work irregular shifts, frequently present a high prevalence of obesity, which might be associated with work-related factors and/or lifestyle. In this context, the aim of this paper was to discuss the relationship of body mass index, appetite-related hormones and sleep characteristics in truck drivers who work irregular shifts compared with day workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to identify utilization schemes developed by students and teachers in their interaction with educational workstations in the electronic measurement and instrumentation laboratory at the Department of Electrical Engineering in the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Brazil. After that, these schemes were used to design a new workstation. For this, it was important to bear in mind that the mentioned artifacts contain two key characteristics: (1) one from the designers themselves, resulting from their experience and their technical knowledge of what they are designing and (2) the experience from users and the means through which they take advantage of and develop these artifacts, in turn rendering them appropriate to perform the proposed task - the utilization schemes developed in the process of mediation between the user and the artifact. The satisfactory fusion of these two points makes these artifacts a functional unit - the instruments. This research aims to demonstrate that identifying the utilization schemes by taking advantage of user experience and incorporating this within the design, facilitates its appropriation and, consequently, its efficiency as an instrument of learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comparative study of working conditions and health hazards of two ports in the state of Ceará: Mucuripe and Pecém, focusing workers in the various categories involved in the operational activities of the two ports. The aim is to investigate changes implemented by the restructuring process of ports arising from the Port Modernization Act. In the case of Ceará, the organization and control of work at the mentioned ports occur differently: Mucuripe, the oldest port, had to adapt to the changes enforced by the Modernization Act and Pecém, called Port Terminal, inaugurated in 2001, 'was born modern'. To achieve our objective, we carried out field work, using Ergonomic Work Analysis. Systematic observations were made of the various activities carried out by workers, as well as interviews with managers, workers and trade unionists. Container operations and other activities of the two ports were recorded in film and presented to groups of workers (focus groups) in order to better understand work organization and the main differences in tasks carried out in the two ports. Each reality presents different characteristics regarding port operations, type of work and labor control. Results indicate that due to the technological innovations, the restructuring process reduced some risks, but brought new occupational hazards and intensification of work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hand Arm Risk Assessment Method (HARM 1.0) has been developed for occupational health officers to perform risk assessments of developing arm, neck or shoulder pain during hand arm tasks. The tool can also help in finding solutions for risk reduction and estimating their effect on the risk level. In this paper the status of affairs and the practical application of HARM is described. The usage of HARM is explained and illustrated with the risk assessment of a specific hand arm task. In addition, the experiences with the application of HARM by a stone factory in The Netherlands are described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to understand the influence of organizational factors on occupational accident causation. A field study was undertaken and focused on the phase of concreting the floors of a residential block in a building project in Brazil. The methodological approach was based on the analysis of carpenters' work practices and of the workers' accounts of minor falls. Observations were noted on work practices over this stage. Furthermore, interviews were conducted with the workers hired by the subcontractors and with professionals working for the main contractor. The results show that falls were related to the introduction of new building technology and its use by the workforce. The production planning and organization of activities by the subcontracted firms also led to temporary demands that were additional determining factors for falls on site. The work analysis reveals the need to consider organizational factors in prevention practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies have found that young workers are at risk for injuries. The risk for accidents is high within construction, indicating that young workers may be especially vulnerable in this industry. In Norway, it is possible to enter the construction industry as a full time worker at the age of 18. The aim of this paper was to explore how young construction workers are received at their workplace with regards to OHS-training. The study was designed as a qualitative case study. Each case consisted of a young worker or apprentice (< 25 years), a colleague, the immediate superior, the OHS manager, and a safety representative in the company. The interviews were recorded and analyzed through content analysis. The results showed that there were differences between large and small companies, where large companies had more formalized routines and systems for receiving and training young workers. These routines were however more dependent on requirements set by legislators and contractors more than by company size, since the legislation has different requirements with impact on OHS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study (DEMS) is an outstanding epidemiological project on the association between occupational diesel exhaust exposures, measured as long-term respirable elemental carbon (REC) estimates, and lung cancer mortality in a large cohort of US miners. Two articles published recently (Attfield et al. (J Natl Cancer Inst Epub, 2012), Silverman et al. (J Natl Cancer Inst Epub, 2012)) dsescribed the epidemiological findings. These papers are expected to have considerable impact on the evaluation of the carcinogenic potential of diesel exhaust and, furthermore, on occupational and environmental limit value discussions related to diesel motor emissions and particle exposures. DEMS found remarkable exposure-response relationships between REC exposure estimates and lung cancer mortality - conditional on a pronounced effect of surface vs. underground work on lung cancer risk. If this risk factor is ignored the estimated REC-lung cancer association is attenuated substantially. The authors relied on this risk factor in their main analyses. However, this factor "surface/underground work" remained unexplained.The factor lead the authors to introduce unusual cross-product terms of location and smoking in adjustment procedures and even caused the authors to hypothesize that high REC exposures are protective against lung cancer excess risks due to smoking. To understand the reliability of these conclusions, we should ask basic questions about the data collection process in DEMS: Did the mortality follow-up procedures suffer from errors like those that affected the NCI formaldehyde cohort study? Are the REC and/or smoking data reliable, and are these data collected/constructed in such a way that the procedures allow valid comparisons between surface and underground workers? Without clarifying the issues raised in this Commentary the Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study remains to be difficult to interpret. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For improved prevention of health issues among blue-collar workers, there is a need for an overview of the physical activity at work and leisure using technical long-term measurements in blue-collar sectors investigation of differences between the sectors. Thus, the objective of this paper was to provide an overview and investigate differences in physical activities and body postures at work and leisure among blue-collar sectors. The Dphacto cohort consists of 1087 workers from manufacturing, transportation and cleaning sectors (901 blue-collar and 186 white-collar workers) in Denmark. Eligible workers provided physical activity and heart rate measurements over several days with follow-up on health-related outcomes by self-report and registers. Considerable differences in sitting, standing, time on feet (walking, shuffling and standing combined) and forward bending of the back were found between work and leisure, and between the sectors. This overview of physical activity at work and leisure can be useful for better prevention of work-related health issues among blue-collar workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This paper reports research exploring how trends in local labour market conditions during the period 2007–2011 (early stages of the 'great recession') relate to reported mental illness for individuals. It contributes to research on spatio-temporal variation in the wider determinants of health, exploring how the lifecourse of places relates to socio-geographical inequalities in health outcomes for individuals. This study also contributes to the renewed research focus on the links between labour market trends and population health, prompted by the recent global economic recession. We report research using the Scottish Longitudinal Study (SLS), a 5.3% representative sample of the Scottish population, derived from census data (https://sls.lscs.ac.uk/). In Scotland, (2011) census data include self-reported mental health. SLS data were combined with non-disclosive information from other sources, including spatio-temporal trends in labour market conditions (calculated using trajectory modelling) in the 32 local authority areas in Scotland. We show that, for groups of local authorities in Scotland over the period 2007–2011, trends in employment varied. These geographically variable trends in employment rates were associated with inequalities in self-reported mental health across the country, after controlling for a number of other individual and neighbourhood risk factors. For residents of regions that had experienced relatively high and stable levels of employment the odds ratio for reporting a mental illness was significantly lower than for the 'reference group', living in areas with persistently low employment rates. In areas where employment declined markedly from higher levels, the odds ratio was similar to the reference group. The findings emphasise how changes in local economic conditions may influence people's health and wellbeing independently of their own employment status. We conclude that, during the recent recession, the economic life course of places across Scotland has been associated with individual mental health outcomes. Highlights • The Scottish Longitudinal Study was used to study mental illness reported in 2011. • The analysis of individuals controlled for personal and local neighbourhood variables. • Local Authority employment trend 2007–11 was associated with reported mental health. • Economic lifecourses of places relate to inequalities in mental health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ground-based high voltage electrical line inspection is one of the difficult and highly dangerous job as far as a manual worker is concerned. The transmission line inspection by robots avoids temporary interruption of power supply that affects the end user and transmission grid. Also, robot-based inspection reduces maintenance cost and hazards. The electrical line inspection is normally carried out using binoculars and rarely by helicopters in most of the countries because of the low cost. Wire traversing or aerial robots are being used in Japan, Canada, USA and Russia for inspecting and monitoring faults in transmission lines and towers. However, most of these robots require a lot of human effort for installation due to its weight and complex design. Cost of these robots is also very high. This paper presents the mechanical design, fabrication and testing of a novel, low cost, light weight and compact power transmission line inspection robot. This work also includes kinematic, static and dynamic analysis of various subsystems of robot. Proposed robot is capable of traversing on straight transmission line and jumper cables present in tension towers. The robot has 10 DoF dual arm for crossing operation and a base system to achieve the locomotion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identify methods used to assess physical activity and sedentary behaviour at the workplace and review the validity and reliability of these measures. Methods: Databases were searched for relevant published articles including MEDLINE, SPORT Discus, ProQuest and Google Scholar. Keywords used were physical-activity, workplace, sedentary-behaviour, measurement and questionnaire. Studies included were original, written in English, published between 1990 and 2009, and focused on validated physical activity and sedentary behaviour measures at work. Eleven papers were identified in which three used criterion standards, three objective measures, and five subjective measures. Results: The most common method of data collection was through self-report, surveys or questionnaires. Physical activity measured with motion sensors, ranged from 4,422 to 10,334 steps/day (pedometers) and sedentary time ranged from 1.8 to 6 hours/day (h/d) (accelerometers). Self-report measures provided information relevant to the perception of physical activity at work (∼ 0.5 h/d), sitting time (> 3 h/d) and calculated energy expenditure (< 800 kcal/d). Conclusion: Physical activity levels at work were low while sedentary behaviour was high. This was largely a function of occupation (white-collar vs. blue-collar). None of the studies assessed validity or reliability of measures used however, instruments as assessed by others showed moderate to strong validity and reliability values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Ciencias Sociales (0797-5538) is the property of Universidad de la Republica, Faculdad de Ciencias Sociales, Departmento de Sociologica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Industrial Relations / Relations Industrielles is the property of Universite Laval, Department of Industrial Relations and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper examines the agglomeration of people working in jobs with similar knowledge requirements, ranging from groups of artists and scientists to service providers and low-skilled labourers. Empirical results from the US suggest that agglomeration enhances earnings in innovation- and creative-based occupations such as artists, engineers, financial executives and information technology workers. In contrast, medical workers, personal service providers and low-skilled labourers do not appear to benefit from agglomeration. Positive agglomeration effects, however, need not lead to a high geographical concentration of economic activity. Rather, an occupation’s ability to concentrate in a few places also depends on the way in which knowledge is disseminated to people outside the occupational cluster. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

One of the overriding goals of Healthy People 2010 is to reduce the health disparities observed among Americans. Because workers in small businesses tend to have little or no access to health screening or preventive health education programs, they may be unaware of their unique risk factors and are thus more at risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Furthermore, occupational health nurses are more likely to be available in health programs to employees in large rather than small businesses. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how nursing values and philosophy might influence public health nurses' thinking about nursing science and ethical issues relating to the risk of CVD among low-wage workers. The following questions will guide the exploration of health disparities among low-wage workers: (a) What are the health disparities observed among low-wage workers with CVD risk? (b) What are the philosophical and ethical perspectives on the issues presented? (c) Based on these findings, how should limited resources be allocated? and (d) How does this affect nursing? These approaches will provide the foundation for developing a culturally sensitive ethical and philosophical perspective to prevent CVD and promote cardiovascular health among low-wage workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brain drain is the cynosure of all the eyes due to high outflow of qualified and skilled workers from Pakistan. The aim of this paper is to highlight causes and solutions to intellectual brain drain in Pakistan. Primary data was collected from 13 immigration consultancies (40 emigrants), and Head of Higher Education Institutions in University of Peshawar (07) by applying judgmental, purposive and accidental sampling. Two types of questionnaire were prepared each for emigrants and faculty members. Majority of the respondents (71%) declared general job dissatisfaction, professional isolation, and poor economic returns along with lack of proper planning for manpower as a push factor for their move. (48) % emigrants considered less opportunity for further studies, development and research serves as a driving factor to move. (33 %) claimed that continuous political instability and threats to their life as a main factor for their emigration. (23%) regard family consideration and for good living standards they decide to leave the country of origin. As far as solutions put forward are (35%) of the emigrants with the suggestion employments (10%) basic facilities (15%) advocate educational reforms in our country can lead towards stopping brain drain,(38% )considered secure and good working environment as well as research facilities to be provided.(23%) propose fair recruitment ,respect for merit, promotion, keep justice in rules and laws (30%) of the emigrants believe economic problems and better economic returns (29% )respondents judge encouragement, respect , equal opportunities and social behavior towards qualified personnel (5%)of the emigrants put forward awareness campaigns need to be initiated to tackle the issue. (8%) suggest to stop political corruption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the influence of blue-collar unions on the wages and fringe benefits of white-collar workers employed in the same establishment. The author uses establishment data on employee compensation in 1974, the last year such data were collected, to estimate these wage and fringe spillovers in the two-digit industries in the manufacturing sector. Wage spillovers appear in only three of 16 industries, with the effect ranging from 10 to 19 percent. For fringes, however, significant spillovers are evident in 12 industries, with effects ranging from 15 to 52 percent. Although the models estimated also allow for the influence of white-collar unions on white-collar wages and fringes, no such effects were observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the marginal productivity theory is central to much of neoclassical labor economics, it has received little empirical support from previous studies, perhaps because of the difficulty of disaggregating the labor variable. This paper estimates the marginal productivity of eight different occupations by estimating production models with cross-section data and comparing the estimated marginal products with factor payments. Two levels of conclusions are reached. First, one can conclude with confidence that this study does not yield evidence supportive of the marginal productivity theory. A second, more tentative, conclusion is that there is a systematic difference between factor payments and productivities: blue-collar occupations are paid less than they produce while capital and white-collar occupations are paid more than they produce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the significant impact of the 2008-2009 global recession on blue-collar workers in the U.S. The authors noted that the so-called Great Recession has increased unemployment, underemployment, hidden unemployment and other forms of labor underutilization. A research paper from the Center for Labor Market Studies, "Blue-Collar Depression," indicated updates on these issues. Blue-collar workers comprise of primarily four groups of occupations: construction and extraction occupations; installations/maintenance and repair crafts; production workers; and, transportation operatives.

Today there are shifts (and emphasis) from vocational/ industrial skills to an emphasis on computer technology, especially in schools. Computer technology skills have become a set of skills that moves students toward hybrid employment positions that straddle both white- and blue- collar positions. This is significant because it shows the correlation between education and employment, and furthermore, how this emphasis in society influences school curriculum. The hybrid technologist is a term I use to discuss employment positions, and a more vocational style of computer education that has been integrated in to schools since the 1980's. The decline of lucrative industrial jobs made integrating technology into the classroom seem to be the right direction for schools to move toward. Through leaning how to navigate computer technology, much like semi-skilled trades in the industrial field, a student could learn a set of skills and would not need more than a high school education to become employable at a job that would support and sustain a middle-class lifestyle Once employed, the hybrid technologist gains value within the workplace because of four unique, and key factors, which will be covered in my paper. Within a workplace, the hybrid technologist may be employed in a position that works closely with management on projects offering technological services or solutions to satisfy the overall objectives. The hybrid technologist is always considered an integral part of the organization's staff, but is almost never viewed as "professional staff." Some examples include installation, technology help desk/troubleshooting, repair, programming, or performing a unique/"skilled" task on the computer. Often times, these semi-skilled positions have the ability to offer services to those in white- collar positions that adds to the hybrid technologists status within an agency. However, it is after work where the hybrid technologist may be seen by their family/peer group as an example of someone who has "made it" beyond labor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African Americans face numerous obstacles in achieving their fullest developmental and career potentials in the current political, social, and economic environment. These barriers have produced, for the most part, workers who have been wage earners as opposed to being self-employed, and blue-collar workers rather than managers or proprietors (Daniel, 2001). This paper proposes solutions that would ensure that African American students who exhibit exceptional talent receive the kind of education to which they are entitled, in preparation for the careers of their choice. In addition to exploring the conditions that led to this underrepresentation, methods to desegregate gifted education programs and redress educational inequalities are analyzed. Specifically, the implications for counselors and teachers, those best situated to bring about positive change, will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Peripheral neuropathy is one of the principal clinical disorders in workers with hand-arm vibration syndrome. Electrophysiological studies aimed at defining the nature of the injury have provided conflicting results. One reason for this lack of consistency might be the sparsity of published longitudinal etiological studies with both good assessment of exposure and a well-defined measure of disease. Against this background we measured conduction velocities in the hand after having assessed vibration exposure over 21 years in a cohort of manual workers. Methods: The study group consisted of 155 male office and manual workers at an engineering plant that manufactured pulp and paper machinery. The study has a longitudinal design regarding exposure assessment and a cross-sectional design regarding the outcome of nerve conduction. Hand-arm vibration dose was calculated as the product of self-reported occupational exposure, collected by questionnaire and interviews, and the measured or estimated hand-arm vibration exposure in 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, and 2008. Distal motor latencies in median and ulnar nerves and sensory nerve conduction over the carpal tunnel and the finger-palm segments in the median nerve were measured in 2008. Before the nerve conduction measurement, the subjects were systemically warmed by a bicycle ergometer test. Results: There were no differences in distal latencies between subjects exposed to hand-arm vibration and unexposed subjects, neither in the sensory conduction latencies of the median nerve, nor in the motor conduction latencies of the median and ulnar nerves. Seven subjects (9%) in the exposed group and three subjects (12%) in the unexposed group had both pathological sensory nerve conduction at the wrist and symptoms suggestive of carpal tunnel syndrome. Conclusion: Nerve conduction measurements of peripheral hand nerves revealed no exposure-response association between hand-arm vibration exposure and distal neuropathy of the large myelinated fibers in a cohort of male office and manual workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses issues related to mesothelioma in people who worked as vehicle mechanics or in brake repair. It addresses 2 questions such as whether studies of motor vehicle repair activities and brake repair activities are appropriate settings to examine risks of mesothelioma from chrysotile exposure and whether it is appropriate to require evidence of elevated associations between an occupation and a disease to ascertain if one incurred the disease due to exposure in that occupation.

This empirical paper investigates how individuals conceptualize causes of career transitions, focusing on the three European countries of Austria, Serbia, and Spain in comparison to the USA and China. Collectively, these countries represent four separate cultural regions according to Schwartz. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with members of three occupational groups: business people, nurses, and blue-collar workers. Analysis of the data generates greater insight about the existence of both region-specific patterns as well as potentially universalistic tendencies regarding perceived causes of career transitions. Perceptions of internal (to the person) drivers of career transitions as activating forces are evident in all five countries. The overall results support contemporary notions of occupational careers that are highly individualized, a characterization strongly emphasized in the current career literature. In the European culture clusters, causes of career transitions are attributed internally and externally. China, representing the Confucian cultural region, stresses external causes for career transitions. By contrast, in the USA only internal attributions of causes are reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims This paper aimed to assess whether the increase of social differentiation of smoking is observed in France. Design and setting Five cross-sectional telephone surveys conducted in France between 2000 and 2007. Participants The surveys were conducted among national representative samples of French subjects aged 18–75 years ( n = 12 256, n = 2906, n = 27 499, n = 2887, n = 6007 in 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007, respectively). We focused on three groups: executives, manual workers and the unemployed. Measurements Time trends of smoking prevalence were assessed, and socio-economic factors (especially occupation and job status) associated with smoking were identified and compared in 2000 and 2005. We also computed respondents' equivalized household consumption (EHI) and their cigarette budget to assess the financial burden of smoking. Findings Between 2000 and 2007, smoking prevalence decreased by 22% among executive managers and professionals and by 11% among manual workers, and did not decrease among the unemployed. Indicators of an underprivileged social situation were associated more markedly with smoking in 2005 than in 2000. In addition, the falling-off of smoking initiation occurred later and was less marked among manual workers than it was among executive managers and professionals. Finally, in 2005 15% of French smokers devoted at least 20% of their EHI to the purchase of cigarettes, versus only 5% in 2000, and smoking weighted increasingly heavily on the poorest smokers' budgets. Conclusions While these results point out an increased social differentiation in tobacco use, they underline the need to design and implement other forms of action to encourage people to quit, in particular targeting individuals belonging to underprivileged groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses whether foreign direct investment (FDI) has contributed to employment generation in Mexico's non-maquiladora manufacturing sector. Drawing on highly disaggregated FDI and employment data, we estimate dynamic labour demand functions for blue and white collar workers, including FDI as well as its interaction with major industry characteristics. FDI has a significantly positive, though quantitatively modest impact on manufacturing employment in Mexico. This applies to both white collar and blue collar employment. The employment enhancing effects of FDI are larger in export oriented industries. In more capital-intensive industries, the employment effect of FDI remains positive for blue collar workers but not white collar ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although white-collar work is of vast importance to the economy, the operations management (OM) literature has focused largely on traditional blue-collar work. In an effort to stimulate more OM research into the design, control, and management of white-collar work systems, this paper provides a systematic review of disparate streams of research relevant to understanding white-collar work from an operations perspective. Our review classifies research according to its relevance to white-collar work at individual, team, and organizational levels. By examining the literature in the context of this framework, we identify gaps in our understanding of white-collar work that suggest promising research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the growth of the public houses has become static within the UK the government has been looking at different ways in which they can strategically expand the market, of which one is the 24-hour drinking legislation. The 24-hour drinking legislation has been operative in the United Kingdom for just over one year now and this article looks at how a chain of public houses has adopted this legislation into their day-to-day running of the business. The paper also discusses the types of consumer's who frequent the public houses at the new trading times and in particular, with the aid of consumer behaviour theory and in particular the PIECE model, discusses the process in which these consumer's go through. The main conclusions denote that shift workers, the unemployed, and blue collar workers all use these premises at the new trading times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Workers earn higher wages in cities vs. rural areas. This gap could arise because cities make workers more productive, or it could be the result of a non-random selection of workers into cities based on their ability and their endogenous history of career choices. To untangle these issues, this paper estimates a dynamic programming model, which embeds the choice of residing in a city or rural area within a model of career choices over time. After controlling for all the sources of selection and endogeneity, the estimates indicate that a given worker does earn more in the city for white-collar work, but not for blue-collar work. In addition, city work experience is found to be worth more than rural work experience in the rural area for white-collar work, but not for blue-collar work. These results support the interpretation that cities make white-collar workers more productive and suggest that workers may consider moving to the city not only in terms of locational choice, but also as a form of human capital investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although overall health has been defined holistically as the integration of a person's optimal mental, physical, social, intellectual, and spiritual well-being, a mental health focus remains on the fringe of many public health efforts. This report describes recent efforts by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to explore job stress among female blue-collar workers. Using a more holistic approach to understand its impact on blue-collar women's overall health, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) was used to assess optimal human performance. Attempting to encapsulate how overall health affects one's ability to participate and fulfill daily personal/professional tasks, HRQOL yields a broader understanding of the interaction between psychological well-being (mind) and physical functioning (matter). Embedding CDC HRQOL-4 measures into a questionnaire used as part of a larger mixed methods project, blue-collar women responded to questions about their health, including both mental and physical. For these female workers, mental health appeared to be of greater consequence, which could be interpreted as mind being more significant than matter. This paper highlights the findings related to HRQOL issues experienced by these female blue-collar workers and summarizes recommendations for effective individual and organizational approaches to address job stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most skills acquired through on-the-job training may be specific to an occupation and therefore transferable to some but not all firms. This paper explores the relationship between the size of the local market for an occupation-specific skill and job-training outcomes. The Stevens (1994) model of training predicts that as market size increases, job turnover increases and training becomes more general. I test these predictions using data on blue-collar workers and variation in market size across US metropolitan areas. The empirical results support the theoretical predictions and the impacts are most relevant at low levels of market size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Starting from the observation of significant within-industry skill-upgrading, this paper analyses how international outsourcing has affected the relative demand for manual workers in German manufacturing during the 1990s. We combine trade and input-output data to disentangle international outsourcing and trade in final goods and differentiate between the effects of narrowly and broadly defined outsourcing towards Central and Eastern Europe (CEEC), the European Union (EU15) and the rest of the world. Accounting for the endogeneity of international outsourcing by applying instrumental variable techniques, the empirical analysis showed that international outsourcing is indeed an important explanatory factor for the observed decline in relative demand for manual workers in German manufacturing. Particularly, outsourcing towards CEEC plays a major role, irrespective of whether a narrow or wide measure of outsourcing is applied. Using a narrow outsourcing measure and controlling for the adverse demand effects of skill-biased technological change, time-changing industry characteristics, wages as well as industry unobserved characteristics, international outsourcing towards CEEC is found to have lowered the manual workers’ wage bill share by 2.7 per-centage points between 1991 and 2000. In its magnitude this effect is comparable to the skill-biased effect of technological progress, as captured by our controls. Outsourcing towards countries outside CEEC and outside the EU15 is found to have small negative effects on the relative demand for manual workers, but only if one follows the broad definition of international outsourcing. Outsourcing towards the EU15 is, however, always found to be insignificant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper analyses the introduction of the organising philosophy into the largest branch of a national, blue-collar, manufacturing union. It outlines the initial adoption of this philosophy and examines the reasons for the failure of this innovation. Some five years later, a second, more successful attempt to introduce the organising model was made. The factors determining this success are analysed in the paper presented here and comparisons are made with the earlier failed attempt. The paper argues that the level of commitment and zeal of the unions' leadership was the crucial factor in determining the extent and culture of organising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The negotiating power of the unions and their role in wage determination depends on the level of centralization of the wage bargaining system as well as on other institutional arrangements. In this study, we estimate a set of wage equations in order to study the employment effects of different unions’ stances in wage determination as well as to investigate other characteristics of employment in Greek manufacturing. We discriminate between workers and employees (blue- and white-collar workers) and between sectors in order to capture differences in the relative supply as well as differences in the negotiating power among the staff of the same industry. Empirical findings reveal that the persistence of unemployment arises as a result of the great bargaining power of the unions in negotiations at a sectoral level. White-collar workers exhibit a stronger negotiating power compared with blue-collar workers because of differences in the institutional framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wages in industrialized countries have risen considerably during the last 50 years, whereas hours worked, for manual workers at least, have decreased only marginally. In Europe, one policy response has been to attempt to protect workers from pressure to work long hours by placing legal restrictions on the amount of hours that may be worked each week. This paper examines the possibility that, in fact, observed hours may be the result of a desire of workers to work longer due to a shift in their preferences from leisure to increased consumption, caused by the huge increase in mass media advertising. A cointegrating VAR framework is used to test this hypothesis on UK time series data for both males and females from 1952 to 1997. Advertising is shown to be positively associated with hours worked for both male and female series. Causality tests indicate unidirectional causality, for males and females, from advertising to hours worked. These results suggest that the European policy response is more likely to restrict employee rather than employer discretion over hours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With more countries entering an era of low fertility, factors that may shape individuals' childbearing desires have been extensively explored. One's intergenerational social mobility experience, however, remains under-discussed. This paper examines this issue against the backdrop of China, in which the total fertility rate has rapidly declined to the lowest-low level in recent decades. Using pooled five-wave data from the Chinese General Social Survey from 2010 to 2017, we found a checkmark-shaped relationship between social class and fertility desire. Chinese farmers have the greatest desired number of children, manual workers have the lowest, and the two upper classes lie in the middle. In general, one's origin class and destination class play a similar role in shaping fertility desire, demonstrating the coexistence of socialization and acculturation processes. The gender-specific examination further suggests that, compared to women, men are more reluctant to change the fertility attitude learned from the origin class. Based on these findings, our study proposes a novel explanation of the decline in fertility desire in China and contributes to the literature on how social mobility experiences and gender ideology jointly construct fertility desire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Globally, countries are taking actions to ensure that their population have improved access to people-centred and integrated health services. Attaining this requires improved access to health workers at all levels of health service delivery and equitably distributed by geographical location. Due to the persistent health worker shortages, countries have resorted to implementing task shifting and task sharing in various settings to optimally utilize existing health workers to improve access to health services. There are deliberations on the need for an implementation framework to guide the adoption and operationalization of task shifting and task sharing as a key strategy for optimally utilizing the existing health workforce towards the achievement of UHC. The objective of this study was to develop an implementation framework for task shifting and task sharing for policy and practice in Africa. Methods: A sequential multimethod research design supported by scoping reviews, and qualitative descriptive study was employed in this study. The evidence generated was synthesized into an implementation framework that was evaluated for applicability in Africa by 36 subject matter experts. Results: The implementation framework for task shifting and task sharing has three core components – context, implementation strategies and intended change. The implementation strategies comprise of iterative actions in the development, translation, and sustainment phases that to achieve an intended change. The implementation strategies in the framework include mapping and engagement of stakeholders, generating evidence, development, implementation and review of a road map (or action plan) and national and/or sub-national policies and strategies, education of health workers using manuals, job aids, curriculum and clinical guidelines, and monitoring, evaluation, reviews and learning. Conclusion: The implementation framework for task shifting and task sharing in Africa serves as a guide on actions needed to achieve national, regional and global goals based on contextual evidence. The framework illustrates the rationale and the role of a combination of factors (enablers and barriers) in influencing the implementation of task shifting and task sharing in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic increased demand for app-based platform-based couriers, creating job opportunities for individuals who have lost income because of COVID-19. Through various stages of lockdown, courier workers (e.g., delivering for Uber Eats, Amazon Flex, and Lyft) provide an essential service. At the same time, this form of work poses risks for exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus as these workers are highly mobile and in contact with many individuals. OBJECTIVE: To explore how platform-based couriers discuss risks associated with their work during periods of high (first wave, second wave, third wave/rise in concerns regarding variants) and low risk during the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020–2021. METHODS: We provide a narrative analysis of user posts (n = 2,866) on Reddit during periods of interest. RESULTS: Our analysis resulted in three central findings. First, we identified changing patterns in discourse as the pandemic went on. Second, we found that the theme of risk prevailed largely in the first wave, with dialogue dominated by tips and asking for advice about how to manage risk. Third, our findings reveal a growing polarization among users during the latter phases of the study. CONCLUSION: Polarization largely focused on acceptance (or not) of public health measures and the nature of their work as independent contractors and the role/responsibility of courier companies to offer protection. Our study is the first to document risks, from the perspectives of anonymous couriers who may be unwilling to share their honest opinions and thoughts through primary data collection where anonymity is not guaranteed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Specific work environments, such as exposure to chemicals emitted during industrial processes, are related to occupational asthma. From 1985 to 2012, Kuwait was expected to have the highest asthma prevalence rate among Middle East nations, at 15%. This cross-sectional study was conducted using secondary data from occupational health physicians' records in the Shuaiba Industrial Medical Center (SIMC) extracted and analyzed using SPSS. Chi-square test and logistic regression were used to check the association between risk factors and bronchial asthma (BA). The data sample size was 3478 in 2018 and 3807 in 2019. In 2018, BA had a significant relationship with age categories, work year groups, and determinants of fitness. Migrant workers above 51 years of age had a high risk of developing BA (p-value = 0.012). There was a high risk of developing BA in workers who worked > 21 years (p-value < 0.001) and in workers who worked between 11 and 20 years (p-value = 0.042). Overweight workers had a risk of developing BA (p-value = 0.042). In 2019, BA had an associated relationship with age categories and determinants of fitness. Workers above 51 years of age had about a 39% risk of developing BA (p-value = 0.009). Otherwise, the BMI, working year groups, marital status, and smoking status had no association with BA. In conclusion, BA is prevalent among migrant workers at the SIMC. Long hours, low income, and a lack of PPE are just a few of the issues that migrant workers have been exposed to, raising their risk of poor health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]