The relationship between health risks and work productivity
Myde Boles1, Barbara Pelletier, Wendy Lynch
1Center for Public Health Studies, School of Community Health, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon, USA. mboles@pdx.edu
Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
|July 13, 2004
Summary
Higher health risks correlate with increased employee productivity loss, impacting both absenteeism and presenteeism. Specific risks like diabetes and stress significantly affect work performance and attendance.
Area of Science:
- Occupational Health
- Health Economics
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Employee productivity is crucial for organizational success.
- Health risks are increasingly recognized as significant factors affecting workforce performance.
- Quantifying the impact of health on productivity loss is essential for targeted interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between various health risks and self-reported productivity loss in employees.
- To differentiate the impact of health risks on absenteeism versus presenteeism.
- To provide empirical evidence for the economic burden of health-related productivity loss.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional analysis of 2264 employees from a large national employer.
- Utilized health risk assessment and a work productivity scale for data collection.
- Employed analysis of variance and multivariate regression (logistic and linear) for statistical analysis.
Main Results:
- A statistically significant positive correlation was found between the number of health risk factors and reported productivity loss (P < 0.001).
- Individuals with more health risk factors reported greater productivity loss.
- Diabetes was significantly associated with absenteeism, while stress was significantly associated with presenteeism.
Conclusions:
- Elevated health risks are strongly linked to substantial productivity loss in the workplace.
- Distinct health risks differentially impact absenteeism and presenteeism.
- Interventions addressing specific health risks may mitigate productivity losses and improve workforce health.
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