10 keys for gender sensitive occupational safety and health practice – a brief overview (original) (raw)
Related papers
Gender issues on occupational safety and health
Annali dell'Istituto superiore di sanita
The increasing proportion of women in the workforce raises a range of gender-related questions about the different effects of work-related risks on men and women. Few studies have characterized gender differences across occupations and industries, although at this time, the gender sensitive approach is starting to acquire relevance in the field of human preventive medicine. The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work has encouraged a policy of gender equality in all European member states. Italy has adopted European provisions with new specific legislation that integrates the previous laws and introduces the gender differences into the workplace. Despite the fact that gender equal legislation opportunities have been enacted in Italy, their application is delayed by some difficulties. This review examines some of these critical aspects.
A GENDER SENSITIVE FRAMEWORK TO SAFETY AND HEALTH AT WORK
The aim of this paper was to formulate a strategy on how to take a gender sensitive approach when negotiating health and safety policies and procedures in the workplace. This was done by carrying out case studies on how companies are managing gender in their occupational health and safety policies, thereby highlighting the different health and safety risks that female and male workers are exposed to. The methodology was based on a structured questionnaire and direct observations to gather information from companies within a Southern African case country. Women's response to the questionnaire and the content of their answers were quite different from those of their male colleagues, indicating that industry is defined, to a large extent, in gender terms as far as working conditions are concerned. Literature from researches that have been carried out on occupational safety and health (OSH) pertaining to gender was reviewed. and it described differences in health at work by gender accounting for both psychosocial and physical hazards at work. The paper outlined a set of interesting lessons for academics, industry and safety practitioners by providing guidelines that will assist in ensuring a correct focus to select an appropriate safety performance evaluation model.
XIV International Conference on Women Leadership And Empowerment, 2020
Construction has not been an obvious career choice for women all over the world as a result of the strongly held masculine perception that they are not suited for the industry and several other consequent challenges they encounter. The terrain of physical work and associated ergonomic hazards are two of such perceptions. Despite the advocacy for liberalisation and feminisation concerning gender roles, traditional stereotypes regarding occupational roles continue to dominate both in theoretical discourses and practice. Women all over the world constitute a minority in the construction workforce and compared to their male counterparts, have unique health and safety needs as construction work exposes them to high risks of injuries and fatalities. The paper reported on studies focusing on gender differences in occupational exposures and outcomes in the South African context as well as internationally. The study also highlights (i) gender considerations in workplace safety (ii) issues pertaining to women's occupational workplace health and safety in construction. The paper suggests that a gender-sensitive approach is required to address and accommodate the health and safety needs of women in construction.
The need for detailed gender-specific occupational safety analysis
Journal of Safety Research, 2017
The female workers are growing in number in the United States. Therefore, the occupational health and 17 safety entities must start to analyze gender-specific data related to every industry, especially to nontraditional 18 occupations. Women working in nontraditional jobs are often exposed to extreme workplace hazards. These 19 women have their safety and health threatened because there are no adequate policies to mitigate gender-20 specific risks such as discrimination and harassment. Employers tend to aggravate this situation because they 21 often fail to provide proper reporting infrastructure and support. According to past studies, women suffered 22 from workplace injuries and illnesses that were less prominent among men. Statistics also confirmed that men 23 and women faced different level of risks in distinct work environments. For example, the rates of workplace 24 violence and murders by personal acquaintances were significantly higher among women. In this paper, the 25 authors analyze prior public data on fatal and nonfatal injuries to understand why we need to differentiate 26 genders when analyzing occupational safety and health issues. Also, the reader will become aware of the current 27 lack of data and knowledge about injuries and illnesses separated by gender and industry.
The Role of Women in Occupational Health and Safety Management: A Gender Perspective
European Journal of Theoretical and Applied Sciences
This article reviews and analyses literature on the role of women in occupational health and safety (OHS) management and proposes strategies for involving women in safety and health management at work. This is based on the fact that ensuring a safe and secure workplace for all, regardless of gender or any form of discrimination is an important part of OHS management. This is due to the many reported incidents of discrimination and bias against women at work places. Based on the view of that safety for women is paramount in the production of goods and services in work places, I argue that the safety and health of women in work places is a critical enabling factor for not only inclusivity but also wholesome production of good and services. Therefore, ensuring safety and health of women in work places requires a holistic approach that encompasses a thorough grounding in knowledge about the basics of safety and health in general. Based on these arguments, I make the point that providing...
Annali di igiene : medicina preventiva e di comunita, 2016
The aim of this study was to investigate the current situation and the research agenda in the field of gender differences, both generically in the occupational settings and in the specific activity of risk assessment. Gender is a key determinant of health; the evaluation of documents and scientific literature shows increasing attention to a gender oriented approach, as demonstrated by the development of Gender Medicine, actually cross-oriented in all medical specialties, the publication of books dedicated to this topic and the birth of "ad hoc" new scientific societies and journals. Even today, however, the gender differences are not considered as they should in the context of health disciplines, including occupational medicine. In this respect, in fact, the critical issues to be overcome are numerous, such as the phenomena of "segregation", the exposure to risk factors and their effects, related also to non-professional, socio-cultural features that differentiat...
The gender workplace health gap in Europe (2003)
Generally speaking, women's issues are absent from health and safety policies: the hazards involved are either unknown or underestimated; and priorities are defined in male-dominated sectors and occupations, and so on. This failure to take account of women's health issues in the workplace constitutes a barrier to effective policies on occupational health and equal opportunities. For several years now, the ETUI Health and Safety department and the ETUC have been trying to incorporate gender into their workplace health and safety policy. In 2001, the ETUI Health and Safety department and ETUC decided to carry out a survey in the 15 EU countries aiming at assessing the situation in two areas: The inclusion of gender issues in health and safety policies. The aim was to ascertain the extent to which issues to do with women's health are taken into account when defining priorities, research activities and statistical data, and also the extent to which they are taken on board by the respective players and institutions. Practical experiences involving health and safety actions at the workplace that take account of gender issues. This book reviews the key issues addressed by the research developments, policies and prospects) and case studies from different EU countries illustrating research action in various sectors on different categories of risks.
American journal of …, 2003
Background Both women's and men's occupational health problems merit scientific attention. Researchers need to consider the effect of gender on how occupational health issues are experienced, expressed, defined, and addressed. More serious consideration of gender-related factors will help identify risk factors for both women and men. Methods The authors, who come from a number of disciplines (ergonomics, epidemiology, public health, social medicine, community psychology, economics, sociology) pooled their critiques in order to arrive at the most common and significant problems faced by occupational health researchers who wish to consider gender appropriately. Results This paper describes some ways that gender can be and has been handled in studies of occupational health, as well as some of the consequences. The paper also suggests specific research practices that avoid errors. Obstacles to gender-sensitive practices are considered. Conclusions Although gender-sensitive practices may be difficult to operationalize in some cases, they enrich the scientific quality of research and should lead to better data and ultimately to well-targeted prevention programs.