Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health最新文献

{"title":"From checkups to change: Longitudinal changes in lifestyle-related factors following repeated occupational health assessments among 106 005 Swedish workers.","authors":"Daniel Väisänen, Elin Ekblom-Bak, Linnea Eriksson, Lena V Kallings, Magnus Svartengren, Robert Lundmark, Magnus Lindwall, Victoria Blom, Andreas Stenling","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4256","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4256","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>We investigated changes in weight, exercise frequency, and perceived health from the first to last health profile assessment (HPA) and between the number of tests within five years. We examined whether sociodemographic factors, or baseline values influenced these changes.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Data from 106 005 employees with ≥2 HPA (1990-2021) were included. Change between the first and last HPA within a five-year period was analyzed. Baseline age, sex, education, occupation, and baseline values of each outcome were included as predictors. XGBoost models assessed changes in the outcomes, and performance was evaluated via root mean squared error, mean absolute error, and R-squared. We employed Shapley Additive Explanations and forward marginal effects to interpret dose-response relationships and subgroup differences.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Predictive performance was low, suggesting that the included variables only partially explained observed changes. Nonetheless, longer intervals between the first and last HPA correlated with greater weight gain, while a higher number of tests predicted slightly lower weight gain and modest improvements in perceived health and exercise frequency, compared to the average change. Younger participants had larger weight increases, whereas those with higher education showed smaller declines in exercise frequency.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Infrequent HPA alone did not appear to substantially influence the lifestyle-related factors studied. However, more frequent HPA, coupled with enhanced feedback and support, may yield small improvements in weight, perceived health, and exercise frequency compared to the average change.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145252532","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A multi-component intervention (NEXpro) reduces neck pain: a randomized controlled trial among Swiss office workers.","authors":"Andrea Martina Aegerter, Venerina Johnston, Thomas Volken, Gisela Sjøgaard, Markus Josef Ernst, Hannu Luomajoki, Achim Elfering, Markus Melloh","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4254","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4254","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>This study aimed to investigate the effect of a 12-week multi-component intervention on neck pain among Swiss office workers.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Between January 2020 and April 2021, we conducted a stepped-wedge cluster randomized controlled trial involving 120 office workers (18-65 years) without severe neck problems from two Swiss companies. Participants started in the control condition and sequentially transitioned to the intervention condition by their cluster. The 12-week intervention included neck exercises, health-promotion workshops, and workplace ergonomics. Neck pain was assessed by intensity [numeric rating scale (NRS) 0=no pain, 10=maximum pain], frequency (days with neck pain in the past 28 days), and disability [Neck Disability Index (NDI) 0%=no disability, 100%=maximum disability). Mixed-effects models were used to assess the intervention's effect on neck pain intensity, frequency, and disability.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>This analysis includes 517 observations (295 control, 222 intervention). At baseline, the mean age was 43.7 years [standard deviation years (SD) 9.8], and 71.7% were female. The average neck pain intensity was NRS 2.4 (SD 2.0), frequency 6.8 days (SD 8.0), and disability 11.8% (SD 9.9). A statistically significant effect favoring the multi-component intervention was found for neck pain frequency, with a marginal predicted mean reduction of 1.55 days [95% confidence interval (CI) -2.84--0.26], and neck disability, with a marginal predicted mean reduction of NDI 2.23% (95% CI -2.96--1.68).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study provides evidence of the effectiveness of a 12-week multi-component intervention in reducing neck pain among office workers. Specifically, office workers experienced neck pain less frequently and with a milder impact on daily activities. Further research is needed to investigate long-term effects.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145213626","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Occupational risk factors for surgically treated lumbar disc herniation - a 33-year follow-up.","authors":"Jens Wahlström, Per Liv, Albin Stjernbrandt, Arkan S Sayed-Noor, Sebastian Mukka, Charlotte Lewis, Jennie A Jackson","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4253","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4253","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This study aimed to assess the associations between occupational biomechanical factors and occurrence of surgically treated lumbar disc herniation (LDH) and describe the consequences in terms of early exit from the labor market.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cohort of 262 850 male construction workers participating in a national occupational health surveillance program was followed prospectively for 33 years (1987-2019). Occupational biomechanical exposures were assessed by a job exposure matrix (JEM) based on specific occupational groups. Workers who underwent surgical treatment for LDH were identified from the national patient register and data on disability pension from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency. Poisson regression models were used to estimate relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for biomechanical exposures, adjusted for age, body mass index, smoking status, height and time period.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>There were 2451 cases of surgical treatment for LDH and the incidence peaked at age 40-45 years. Increased risks were found for often lifting >25 kg (RR 1.77, 95% CI 1.06-2.94), extreme lumbar flexion/extension (RR 1.60, 95% CI 1.37-1.88) and high exposure to whole-body vibration (RR 1.32, 95% CI 1.05-1.65). Among cases, the mean age for exiting the labor market due to disability pension was 55.9 years for white-collar workers and 51.7 years for construction workers.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Occupational exposure to heavy lifting and working in non-neutral back postures was associated with increased risk of surgical treatment for LDH. Construction workers who have had surgery for LDH exited the labor market with disability pension earlier than white-collar workers.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145138536","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Risk of incident stroke and heart disease subtypes in a nationwide cohort of Korean radiation workers.","authors":"Eun Shil Cha, Kyunghee Chae, Haesu Jeong, Dalnim Lee, Soojin Park, Ga Bin Lee, Minsu Cho, Hyeonseok Nam, Songwon Seo","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4251","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4251","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Previous studies have explored the association between low-dose radiation and circulatory diseases, but few have focused on stroke and heart disease subtypes. This study aimed to investigate subtype-specific risks among Korean radiation workers.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We analyzed data from 186 233 workers enrolled in the Korean Radiation Workers Study cohort. Individual radiation exposure was assessed using personal dose data, and organ-specific doses were reconstructed. Using the National Health Insurance Database, circulatory diseases were identified based on validated operational definitions developed for six subtypes. Sex- and age-standardized incidence ratios (SIR) were estimated. Dose-response relationships were assessed by estimating the relative rates (RR) and excess relative risks (ERR) per 10 mGy, adjusting for the sex, attained age, birth year and calendar year. Additional confounders in the ERR models included income level, smoking, blood pressure, blood glucose level, and body mass index.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Ischemic heart disease has the highest incidence (367.6 per 100 000 person-years), followed by heart failure and ischemic stroke. The overall incidence rates of most subtypes were lower among radiation workers than the general population, reflecting a healthy worker effect (SIR range: 0.70-0.90). No statistically significant positive dose-response relationships were observed for all six subtypes; ERR estimates were generally negative, with the highest point estimate observed for hemorrhagic stroke (ERR per 10 mGy: 0.014; 95% confidence interval -0.049-0.077).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>While no clear radiation-related risk was observed, the findings highlight the importance of subtype-specific analysis and the need for refined outcome definitions and longer follow-up periods to clarify potential low-dose radiation effects.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145125846","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of a quantitative job exposure matrix for standing, walking, and forward bending among pregnant workers - The PRECISE JEM.","authors":"Hannah Nørtoft Frankel, Esben Meulengracht Flachs, Camilla Sandal Sejbaek, Jonathan Aavang Petersen, Jens Peter Bonde, Ingrid Sivesind Mehlum, Mette Korshøj, Susan Peters, Magnus Svartengren, Pasan Hettiarachchi, Peter J Johansson, Alex Burdorf, Luise Mølenberg Begtrup","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4252","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4252","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Occupational physical activity (OPA) during pregnancy has been linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes, but crude exposure assessment remains an issue in causal inference. We aimed to develop a quantitative trimester-specific job exposure matrix (JEM) for standing, walking, and forward bending among pregnant workers.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Accelerometer measurements from 403 female workers across 109 DISCO-08 job codes were obtained in Denmark between January 2023 and June 2024. Full workdays were measured during two weeks among pregnant workers and one week among non-pregnant workers. We used linear mixed-effects models to estimate exposure levels of occupational standing, walking, and forward bending for all 1171 DISCO-08 codes, including age, trimester, and expert ratings as fixed effects, and job codes and workers as random effects.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The between-job variances relative to total variances were 56% for standing, 51% for walking, and 45% for forward bending. The fixed effect trimester reduced standing time by 0.38 hours during the 3rd trimester compared to non-pregnant participants, whereas no differences were observed for walking or forward bending. Based on the trimester-specific JEM for occupational standing time, bakers had the highest exposure (range from non-pregnant to 3rd trimester, 5.41-5.03 hours/workday). For walking and forward bending, the highest exposed jobs from the pregnancy-specific JEM were waiters (1.76 hours/workday) and livestock/dairy producers (1.24 hours/workday), respectively.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The JEM enhances independent objective exposure assessment in epidemiological studies of OPA and pregnancy outcomes and may advance guidelines and potentially prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145081374","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Job control and working life expectancy in Sweden.","authors":"Melody Almroth, Alicia Nevriana, Daniel Falkstedt, Alex Burdorf, Katarina Kjellberg, Tomas Hemmingsson, Kuan-Yu Pan, Jacob Pedersen","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4250","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4250","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This study aimed to investigate the impact of low job control on labor market participation expressed through working life expectancy (WLE) and working years lost (WYL) among men and women in Sweden.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A random sample of 100 000 individuals was drawn from the Swedish Work, Illness, and labor market Participation (SWIP) cohort of the registered Swedish population in 2005 born 1945 to 1975. The multi-state estimated labor market affiliation method was used to estimate WLE and WYL due to unemployment, sickness absence, other, disability pension, early old-age pension, and death over a 15-year period (2006-2020). Job control was assessed through a job exposure matrix.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Men and women in high-control jobs had a longer WLE at each age. At age 30, the WLE for men in high-control jobs was 26.3 years while for men in low-control jobs this was 2.5 years shorter. For women, WLE at 30 was 25.8 years for high-control jobs but nearly five years shorter for low-control jobs. For both men and women, these differences were mostly due to disability pension and unemployment. Those in lower control jobs could expect to lose more working years according to nearly all other states besides active employment.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Higher job control is linked to longer WLE, while low job control is an important determinant of WYL in the Swedish workforce. Addressing low job control could extend working lives and reduce inequities in labor market outcomes.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145030343","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Requirements for occupational exposure limits in psychosocial risk assessment: What we know, what we don't know and what we can learn from other disciplines.","authors":"Roman Pauli, Jessica Lang, Andreas Müller, Yacine Taibi, Thomas Kraus, Yannick Metzler","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4247","DOIUrl":"10.5271/sjweh.4247","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This discussion paper aims to provide recommendations for the development of occupational exposure limits (OEL) for psychosocial hazards. By comparing the characteristics of non-psychosocial and psychosocial hazards at work as well as approaches to derive occupational limit values for both types of hazards, the paper summarizes conceptual requirements and methodological perspectives for OEL in psychosocial risk assessment.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>An interdisciplinary working group comprised of academics, active practitioners in company occupational health management and members of national committees advising policymakers conducted regular face-to-face and online meetings between October 2022 and August 2024 to draft a narrative review and discussion of the current state of research on OEL for psychosocial hazards within the fields of psychology, sociology and medicine.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The current field of research is in its early stages, indicated by individual efforts and a lack of joint decision-making. Existing approaches towards OEL focus on disease-level outcomes (eg, burnout, depression), which limits their effectiveness for primary prevention and identifying early warning signs of harm.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Based on the limited existing literature, we recommend (i) the use of outcome variables that enable detection of early stages of adverse effects aligned with the no-observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) and the lowest-observed-adverse effect level (LOAEL), (ii) standardization and harmonization of hitherto independent assessments of identical hazards, and (iii) policy-level actions to foster collaborative decision-making based on the full spectrum of scientific evidence.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144993000","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effectiveness of two vocational interventions on sickness absence and costs for people with musculoskeletal disorders: 12 months results from the MI-NAV multi-arm randomized trial.","authors":"Britt Elin Øiestad, Esther Maas, Fiona Aanesen, Alexander Tingulstad, Tarjei Rysstad, Maurits van Tulder, Anne Therese Tveter, Milada Hagen, Rigmor C Berg, Nadine E Foster, Gwenllian Wynne-Jones, Gail Sowden, Gunnhild Bagøien, Roger Hagen, Kjersti Storheim, Margreth Grotle","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4248","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.4248","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This study aimed to assess 12-month outcomes on return to work (RTW) and cost-effectiveness in adults on sick leave due to musculoskeletal disorders who were randomized to either usual case management (UC), UC+motivational interviewing (MI) or UC+stratified vocational advice intervention (SVAI).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The study was conducted in the Norwegian Labor and Welfare Administration (NAV). Workers on sick leave due to musculoskeletal disorders for ≥50% of their contracted work hours for ≥7 consecutive weeks were included. Trained caseworkers delivered MI in two face-to-face sessions, and physiotherapists provided SVAI and identified RTW obstacles. The main outcomes were sick leave days over 12 months and cost-effectiveness, cost-utility and cost-benefit.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The trial included 509 workers with a mean age of 48 years. There were statistically significant differences between UC+MI versus UC [-15.6 days, 95% confidence interval (CI) -31.0- -0.2], and UC+SVAI versus UC (-17.6 days, 95% CI -33.0- -2.2). Compared to UC, odds ratios (OR) for receiving wage replacement benefits each month were lower for UC+MI (OR=0.73, 95% CI 0.64-0.84), and UC+SVAI (OR 0.74, 95% CI 0.64-0.84). The probabilities of cost-effectiveness were high for adding either MI or SVAI to UC (ceiling ratio 0.90), and the net benefit for MI was €5225 (95% CI -592-10 985) and for SVAI €7214 ((95% CI 1548-12 851) per person.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Adding MI or SVAI to UC significantly improved RTW outcomes and was cost-effective among people on sickness absence due to musculoskeletal disorders.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145030384","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The impact of telework allowance and utilization on physiological and perceived stress among Swedish white-collar workers.","authors":"Leticia Bergamin Januario, Marina Heiden, Svend Erik Mathiassen, Gunnar Bergström, David M Hallman","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4234","DOIUrl":"10.5271/sjweh.4234","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>We aimed to assess the impact of telework conditions on stress levels among 294 Swedish white-collar workers.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Telework during the COVID-19 pandemic was evaluated in terms of the allowance to telework (ie, the degree to which the employee could decide whether to telework), and the utilization of that allowance, using self-reported questions with answers dichotomized into 'high' and 'low'. Perceived stress was measured using the Single Item Stress Question and physiological stress was measured using parameters of heart rate variability (HRV) continuously for three days [root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD) and standard deviation of the interbeat intervals of normal heart beats (SDNN)]. Multilevel linear mixed models examined the effects of telework allowance and utilization on perceived stress and HRV during work, leisure and sleep.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>High allowance was associated with higher HRV (lower stress), while a high utilization of telework was associated with higher perceived stress and lower HRV (more stress). After adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, and objectively measured physical activity, these associations became smaller and/or non-significant, with exception of high allowance still being positively associated with higher RMSSD.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our findings indicate that allowing employees more autonomy in telework decisions (ie, a high allowance in this study) is associated with reduced physiological stress. These results can be used by organizations to improve telework conditions (how, where and how much), while being observant that white-collar workers do not utilize increased autonomy to work extensively and for long hours outside work. Further verification, preferably using prospective designs, is needed to confirm our results.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":"404-412"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12414508/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144174716","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Productivity changes during the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated risk factors.","authors":"Guilherme Monteiro Sanchez Dalla Riva, Sander K R van Zon, Patricia Ots, Gerard van den Berg, Sandra Brouwer, Raun van Ooijen","doi":"10.5271/sjweh.4237","DOIUrl":"10.5271/sjweh.4237","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>This study aimed to investigate productivity loss during the COVID-19 pandemic and identify risk factors by examining indicators of work productivity loss in a population-based cohort in The Netherlands.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Longitudinal data from the Lifelines COVID-19 cohort were used, enriched with registry data from Statistics Netherlands. Data of N=11 462 workers were collected from 2020-2022. Productivity loss was measured using four indicators: unemployment, sickness absence rate, loss of work hours, and loss of work quality. Generalized estimating equations were used to examine the association between socioeconomic, health-, and work-related characteristics and the four indicators.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Unemployment remained low (<0.5%) throughout the pandemic. In contrast, prevalence of sickness absence, reduction of work hours and work quality peaked at 8.7%, 15%, and 4.7%, respectively. Critical work was associated with higher odds of sickness absence and quality loss, but lower odds of unemployment and loss of hours. Younger age and recent COVID-19 were associated with higher odds of sickness absence, loss of work hours and quality. Chronic health conditions were associated with higher odds of sickness absence and quality loss. Having children was associated with lower odds of unemployment and loss of hours.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Despite low unemployment rates, productivity loss was observed at other indicators: sickness absence, loss of hours and quality. In addition, productivity was lost unequally among groups. When preparing for future crises, attention should be paid to broader indicators of productivity loss among different groups. Findings may help for offering targeted interventions to minimize losses in productivity and protect higher risk groups of workers.</p>","PeriodicalId":21528,"journal":{"name":"Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health","volume":" ","pages":"394-403"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12414509/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144326838","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}