Workplace gender composition and sickness absence: A register-based study from Sweden

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Sociology of Work
• Public Health

Background:

• Workplace gender composition is a potential determinant of employee health outcomes.
• Understanding how gender distribution influences sickness absence is crucial for workplace well-being.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between workplace gender composition and sickness absence.
• To determine if gender composition impacts the risk of long-term sickness absence (≥90 days).

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the Northern Swedish Cohort (2007), including 132,464 individuals.
• Defined exposure as workplace gender composition (female-dominated, male-dominated, gender-equal).
• Assessed cumulative sickness absence days (≥90 days) using insurance and labor market data, with multivariable regression analyses.

Main Results:

• Extremely female-dominated workplaces were associated with a higher risk of sickness absence (OR=1.27) compared to gender-equal workplaces.
• Extremely and moderately male-dominated workplaces showed a lower risk of sickness absence (OR=0.62, 0.66).
• Gender-stratified analysis revealed industry variations explained the higher absence risk in female-dominated settings.

Conclusions:

• Female-dominated workplaces present a higher risk of sickness absence.
• Industry type is a key factor mediating the relationship between female-dominated workplaces and sickness absence.
• Male-dominated workplaces are associated with reduced sickness absence risk.