School of Business, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, China.
School of Management, Guilin University of Aerospace Technology, Guilin 541004, China.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Dec 12;19(24):16695. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192416695.
Underemployment is a global problem. This study aimed to assess the short- and long-term effects of underemployment (hidden unemployment) on workers' health, using data from the China Labor-force Dynamic Survey (CLDS) 2016 and 2014. Indicators reflecting workers' self-rated health, mental health, prevalence of illness over time, and employment status were analyzed using logit regression models, propensity score matching methods, and instrumental variable methods. Empirical analyses showed that: (1) In the short-term, the impact on health is multidimensional, with underemployment significantly associated with a decline in workers' self-rated health, an increase in the propensity for depression, and an increase in the prevalence of illness over a certain period of time. (2) In the long-term, the experience of underemployment two years in the past is associated with a current decline in workers' mental health. That is, the negative effects of underemployment on workers' mental health persist and do not disappear rapidly over time. The results demonstrated that underemployment is detrimental to workers' health in the short- and long-term. In the context of epidemic prevention and control, the government and society should focus on this expanding group, establish labor protection mechanisms, and reduce the multiple effects of underemployment on workers' health.
就业不足是一个全球性问题。本研究旨在利用中国劳动力动态调查（CLDS）2016 年和 2014 年的数据，评估就业不足（隐性失业）对工人健康的短期和长期影响。使用 logit 回归模型、倾向得分匹配方法和工具变量方法分析了反映工人自我健康评估、心理健康、随时间推移的疾病患病率和就业状况的指标。实证分析表明：（1）在短期内，对健康的影响是多方面的，就业不足与工人自我健康评估下降、抑郁倾向增加以及一定时期内疾病患病率增加显著相关。（2）在长期内，过去两年的就业不足经历与当前工人心理健康水平下降有关。也就是说，就业不足对工人心理健康的负面影响持续存在，不会随着时间的推移迅速消失。研究结果表明，就业不足对工人的短期和长期健康都有不利影响。在疫情防控背景下，政府和社会应关注这一不断扩大的群体，建立劳动保护机制，减少就业不足对工人健康的多重影响。
