Digital communication and work stress. This project aims to examine email load and its effects on work pressure, health, sleep and recovery using a national longitudinal design and innovative diary research. The project intends to advance theoretical and practical understanding of the well-being of staff and the impact of technological and competitiveness in the context of Australian universities. Expected outcomes include will address a gap in research by including casual employees, so that the ....Digital communication and work stress. This project aims to examine email load and its effects on work pressure, health, sleep and recovery using a national longitudinal design and innovative diary research. The project intends to advance theoretical and practical understanding of the well-being of staff and the impact of technological and competitiveness in the context of Australian universities. Expected outcomes include will address a gap in research by including casual employees, so that the findings can potentially benefit all occupational groups. In addition to assisting university management to attain healthier work environments, the project may benefit other Australian workers.Read moreRead less
Work-related fatal and non-fatal accidents and injuries and exposure to workplace hazards in migrant workers in Australia. Do migrants have worse workplace conditions and more work-related accidents and injuries than Australian-born workers? This project will analyse national deaths and hospital discharge data, and determine best practice methods to include migrant workers in a future cross-sectional study looking at occupational health and safety.
'Just right' job design: A new model using the Goldilocks paradigm. This proposal will generate new knowledge about designing jobs with the right amount of human movement. Prolonged sitting is now a serious work hazard that contributes to cardiovascular risk and obesity. The high incidence of these conditions in many work systems, such as rail, also presents a critical safety hazard due to threat of sudden incapacity while driving. Expected project outcomes are a ‘Just Right’ Job Design model sh ....'Just right' job design: A new model using the Goldilocks paradigm. This proposal will generate new knowledge about designing jobs with the right amount of human movement. Prolonged sitting is now a serious work hazard that contributes to cardiovascular risk and obesity. The high incidence of these conditions in many work systems, such as rail, also presents a critical safety hazard due to threat of sudden incapacity while driving. Expected project outcomes are a ‘Just Right’ Job Design model showing how tasks can be designed to enhance safety and health while maintaining productivity, and in the unlikeliest of workplaces. This will provide significant benefits for the many working Australians whose safety and health are compromised by exposure to prolonged sitting in seemingly intractable environments.Read moreRead less
Occupational injury prevention in high temperature environments. This project aims to explore the contribution of heat as a risk factor in work-related illness and injury. Approximately 600 000 Australians experience a work-related illness or injury each year. Hot weather may directly or indirectly lead to accidents, but heat as a risk factor has not been systematically explored, and is particularly relevant in a warming climate. This project aims to improve safety and productivity in Australian ....Occupational injury prevention in high temperature environments. This project aims to explore the contribution of heat as a risk factor in work-related illness and injury. Approximately 600 000 Australians experience a work-related illness or injury each year. Hot weather may directly or indirectly lead to accidents, but heat as a risk factor has not been systematically explored, and is particularly relevant in a warming climate. This project aims to improve safety and productivity in Australian industry by generating new evidence and predictive models to inform injury prevention policy and guidance, and facilitating the development of practical, targeted resources. This project expects to add to the body of knowledge regarding workers’ health and safety and to be of benefit to industry and subpopulations at risk.Read moreRead less
Sleepy and sitting: a dual curse for the modern workforce? This project aims to generate new knowledge about the impact of inadequate sleep and prolonged sitting on health markers and performance. Many workers, particularly those working outside standard hours, experience both prolonged sitting and inadequate sleep. Expected outcomes of this project include critical evidence to address the dual burden experienced by a large population of workers who are both sleepy and sitting. This should provi ....Sleepy and sitting: a dual curse for the modern workforce? This project aims to generate new knowledge about the impact of inadequate sleep and prolonged sitting on health markers and performance. Many workers, particularly those working outside standard hours, experience both prolonged sitting and inadequate sleep. Expected outcomes of this project include critical evidence to address the dual burden experienced by a large population of workers who are both sleepy and sitting. This should provide significant benefits for the many working Australians whose health and safety is compromised due to their exposure to inadequate sleep and prolonged sitting. It will also contribute to the evidence-base for workplace policies and public health guidelines.Read moreRead less
Sleeping with one ear open: the impact on sleep and waking function. The aim of the project is to assess the impact 'on-call' work has on sleep, stress, and next day performance. Two million Australians are on-call providing essential 24-hour services including emergency response. While sleep during on-call periods is disrupted when a call occurs, some research suggests that sleeping with one ear open waiting for a call may disrupt sleep even if no call occurs. If on-call sleep is less restorati ....Sleeping with one ear open: the impact on sleep and waking function. The aim of the project is to assess the impact 'on-call' work has on sleep, stress, and next day performance. Two million Australians are on-call providing essential 24-hour services including emergency response. While sleep during on-call periods is disrupted when a call occurs, some research suggests that sleeping with one ear open waiting for a call may disrupt sleep even if no call occurs. If on-call sleep is less restorative, then individuals are at risk of performance impairment and adverse health outcomes. This project aims to answer questions about the magnitude of sleep disruption when on-call, the mechanisms for any disruption, and impact on waking function.Read moreRead less
The impact of policy, demography and geography on work disability. This project aims to map the burden of work disability in Australia through geographic, socioeconomic, demographic and occupational factors. The project intends to determine the impact of state and territory workers' compensation practice on work disability and identify target groups for intervention. Expected outcomes include new insights which nation’s workers’ compensation systems can use in order to implement policy practices ....The impact of policy, demography and geography on work disability. This project aims to map the burden of work disability in Australia through geographic, socioeconomic, demographic and occupational factors. The project intends to determine the impact of state and territory workers' compensation practice on work disability and identify target groups for intervention. Expected outcomes include new insights which nation’s workers’ compensation systems can use in order to implement policy practices that will reduce the burden of work disability in Australia. This outcome would, in turn, improve national productivity and lead to flow-on benefits for the Australian economy and social protection systems such as social security and healthcare.Read moreRead less
The significance of psychosocial safety climate, health and happiness for productivity at work. Despite national efforts, for a decade workers compensation claims for work stress have remained stable. This project proposes an innovative science driven multilevel process model, with organisational psychosocial safety climate as a lead indicator of productivity loss (for example, time loss), and a conditioner of paths linking job demands, job resources, work engagement, happiness, mental (for exam ....The significance of psychosocial safety climate, health and happiness for productivity at work. Despite national efforts, for a decade workers compensation claims for work stress have remained stable. This project proposes an innovative science driven multilevel process model, with organisational psychosocial safety climate as a lead indicator of productivity loss (for example, time loss), and a conditioner of paths linking job demands, job resources, work engagement, happiness, mental (for example, depression) and physical health to productivity. This four wave longitudinal study of 3000 Australian workers, also linking to objective workers compensation data, will provide fresh insights regarding workplace primary prevention. Read moreRead less
Tranquillising Work Stress: Corporate Climate and Antidepressant Use. This national project will investigate the plausible link between distress at work and Australia’s high levels of antidepressant use, through creative linkage of data from the Australian Workplace Barometer (10-year longitudinal study) to antidepressant medication data (via the national Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme). The project advances theory by probing the role corporate climate plays in work design, distress, mental hea .... Tranquillising Work Stress: Corporate Climate and Antidepressant Use. This national project will investigate the plausible link between distress at work and Australia’s high levels of antidepressant use, through creative linkage of data from the Australian Workplace Barometer (10-year longitudinal study) to antidepressant medication data (via the national Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme). The project advances theory by probing the role corporate climate plays in work design, distress, mental health problems and antidepressant use. It will determine if antidepressant use has led to an underestimation of work stress effects. It will estimate the $AUD cost of work related antidepressant use. The project will yield evidence to stimulate corporate climate change to protect worker psychological health and wellbeing.Read moreRead less
Climate Change and Burden of Disease: Current Risk and Future Burden. Climate change has had a negative impact on human health. However, few studies have assessed burden of diseases (BOD) for these climate-sensitive/heat attributable diseases. We will generate the first national picture of the climate attributable BOD in Australia, measured in Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY), the attribution from climate, and project future BOD under various climatic/demographic change scenarios. This proje ....Climate Change and Burden of Disease: Current Risk and Future Burden. Climate change has had a negative impact on human health. However, few studies have assessed burden of diseases (BOD) for these climate-sensitive/heat attributable diseases. We will generate the first national picture of the climate attributable BOD in Australia, measured in Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY), the attribution from climate, and project future BOD under various climatic/demographic change scenarios. This project will rank Australian climate-sensitive/heat attributable diseases by their current burden and projected increase under climate changes, and provide needed scientific evidence to policy-makers in the development, prioritization and implementation of current and future climate change and health adaptation strategies. Read moreRead less