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Interactions of Work and Health: An Economic Perspective

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Handbook of Socioeconomic Determinants of Occupational Health

Part of the book series: Handbook Series in Occupational Health Sciences ((HDBSOHS))

Abstract

A growing part of empirical microeconomics papers studies the interaction between employment and health. This literature tries to disentangle the two-way causal relationship. On one hand, the health status influences the employment position and, at the same time, working affects, positively or negatively, the health status. The literature concludes that a favorable work environment and high job security lead to better health conditions. Being employed with appropriate working conditions plays a protective role on physical health and psychiatric disorders. By contrast, nonemployment and retirement are generally worse particularly for mental health in reference to employment. In addition, overemployment has a negative effect on health. These findings stress the importance of job sustainability for the health of workers. Thus, in most developed countries, labor-market policy has increasingly paid attention to job sustainability and job satisfaction. The literature clearly invites employers to take better account of the worker preferences when setting the number of hours worked. Overall, a combination of high employment protection, job satisfaction, decision latitude, and active labor-market policies is likely to have a positive effect on health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Université Paris-Est Créteil, ERUDITE, Créteil, France

    Thomas Barnay

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  1. Thomas Barnay
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Correspondence to Thomas Barnay .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Stress Research Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Stockholms Län, Sweden

    Töres Theorell

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  1. Department of Public Health, Kitasato University School of Medicine, Sagamihara, Japan

    Akizumi Tsutsumi

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Barnay, T. (2020). Interactions of Work and Health: An Economic Perspective. In: Theorell, T. (eds) Handbook of Socioeconomic Determinants of Occupational Health. Handbook Series in Occupational Health Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05031-3_30-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05031-3_30-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-05031-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-05031-3

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