TY - JOUR

T1 - Return to work among sickness-absent Danish employees: prospective results from the Danish Work Environment Cohort Study/National Register on Social Transfer Payments

AU - Lund, Thomas

AU - Labriola, Merete

AU - Christensen, Karl B

AU - Bültmann, Ute

AU - Villadsen, Ebbe

N1 - Keywords: Denmark; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Health Status; Humans; Male; Prospective Studies; Sick Leave; Socioeconomic Factors; Work

PY - 2006

Y1 - 2006

N2 - This study investigates the determinants within socio-demography, health behaviour, employer characteristics, and psychosocial and physical work environment for return to work. In 2000, a total of 5357 employees were interviewed regarding age, gender, family status, education, health behaviour, employer characteristics and work environment. They were followed in a national register for 18 months in order to identify subjects with 2 weeks or more of sickness absence. They were followed for an additional 12 months in order to establish associations between baseline measurements and time to first return to work. A total of 930 (17.4%) employees experienced sickness absence in the 18 months after baseline. During the 12-month follow-up, 856 (92.0%) returned to work, the mean absence period being 6.6 weeks. Prolonged time to first return to work was associated with female gender, increased age, no post-school education, being employed by a public employer, working at a workplace with 20 or more employees, high emotional demands in work, high job insecurity and sedentary work. There were no associations between health behaviour variables and return to work. The study indicates a potential for promoting return to work through interventions targeting emotional job demands, job insecurity and decreasing the risks associated with sedentary work.

AB - This study investigates the determinants within socio-demography, health behaviour, employer characteristics, and psychosocial and physical work environment for return to work. In 2000, a total of 5357 employees were interviewed regarding age, gender, family status, education, health behaviour, employer characteristics and work environment. They were followed in a national register for 18 months in order to identify subjects with 2 weeks or more of sickness absence. They were followed for an additional 12 months in order to establish associations between baseline measurements and time to first return to work. A total of 930 (17.4%) employees experienced sickness absence in the 18 months after baseline. During the 12-month follow-up, 856 (92.0%) returned to work, the mean absence period being 6.6 weeks. Prolonged time to first return to work was associated with female gender, increased age, no post-school education, being employed by a public employer, working at a workplace with 20 or more employees, high emotional demands in work, high job insecurity and sedentary work. There were no associations between health behaviour variables and return to work. The study indicates a potential for promoting return to work through interventions targeting emotional job demands, job insecurity and decreasing the risks associated with sedentary work.

U2 - 10.1097/01.mrr.0000210056.24915.c2

DO - 10.1097/01.mrr.0000210056.24915.c2

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 16900044

VL - 29

SP - 229

EP - 235

JO - International Journal of Rehabilitation Research

JF - International Journal of Rehabilitation Research

SN - 0342-5282

IS - 3

ER -