Center for Research on Service Science, Applied University Neu-Ulm, Neu-Ulm, Germany.
Bundeswehr Universität München, Neubiberg, Germany.
Work. 2022;73(2):591-610. doi: 10.3233/WOR-205329.
Work in the industrial sector underlies deep structural changes triggered by demographic and societal transformations. These developments require tailored measures for maintaining employees' work ability by reacting to new demands and overcoming barriers in organizational implementation. Previous research lacks in considering practitioners' perspective in terms of tailoring effective interventions to the workplace conditions of blue-collar employees.
This study aims to enrich the understanding of work ability by using the job-demands-resources (JDR)-theory and the work ability house concept as basis and considering aspects of organizational measures' feasibility.
Data results from observations of the collaboration between occupational health professionals and supervisors on the shop-floor and n = 18 semi-structured interviews with different occupational health stakeholders. A participatory and qualitative approach characterizes this study.
The study participants report on how increasing organizational demands of efficiency and uncertainty affect workability promotion of blue-collar employees. Furthermore, the findings imply aspects regarding feasible interventions. For designing effective interventions, specifically psychosocial aspects such as work intensification, job uncertainty, work-life-conflicts, and inter-personal trust need to be addressed. Measures need to be aligned better to the industrial setting with specific focus on decision-makers' interests and intra-organizational collaboration.
Further research should investigate interrelationships between relevant psycho-social job demands and resources. Moreover, additional aspects, which are related to measures implementation in the organizational sphere, need to be identified. Practical implications connect organizational sciences with the workability theory and the job-demands-resources (JDR)-theory by focusing more on psychological work design and intra-organizational collaboration.
工业领域的工作是由人口和社会转型引发的深层次结构变化的基础。这些发展要求采取有针对性的措施，通过应对新需求和克服组织实施中的障碍，维持员工的工作能力。以前的研究缺乏从考虑从业者的角度出发，针对蓝领员工的工作场所条件，制定有效的干预措施。
本研究旨在通过使用工作要求-资源（JDR）理论和工作能力屋概念作为基础，并考虑组织措施可行性的方面，丰富对工作能力的理解。
数据来自观察职业健康专业人员与车间主管之间的合作以及对不同职业健康利益相关者的 n=18 次半结构化访谈。本研究采用参与式和定性方法。
研究参与者报告了效率和不确定性不断增加的组织需求如何影响蓝领员工的工作能力提升。此外，研究结果还涉及到可行的干预措施。为了设计有效的干预措施，特别是需要解决工作强度、工作不确定性、工作生活冲突和人际信任等心理社会方面的问题。措施需要更好地与工业环境相匹配，特别要关注决策者的利益和组织内部的合作。
进一步的研究应该调查相关心理社会工作需求和资源之间的相互关系。此外，还需要确定与组织领域措施实施相关的其他方面。实践意义将组织科学与工作能力理论和工作要求-资源（JDR）理论联系起来，更加注重心理工作设计和组织内部合作。
