Graduate Program in Public Health, Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Institute of Pure and Applied Sciences. Health and Safety Engineering, University of Itajubá, Itabira, MG, Brazil.
BMC Public Health. 2023 Oct 25;23(1):2095. doi: 10.1186/s12889-023-16973-1.
The regulation of working hours is governed by legal standards in formal employment. While the association between long working hours and various health outcomes has been extensively studied, there is limited evidence regarding Brazil. The objective of this study was to investigate the association among working hours, employment status, and self-rated health (SRH), taking into account differences between men and women in a national representative sample of the working population in Brazil.
A cross-sectional study was conducted among a representative sample of 33,713 workers in Brazil to assess self-rated health (SRH). We examined the associations between working hours and employment status, categorizing working hours as standard (40-44 h per week) or long (> 44 h per week), and employment status as formal or informal. Logistic regression models were employed, adjusting for sociodemographic, occupational characteristics, and health behaviors. Probabilities of negative SRH were calculated for men and women in different exposure profiles. Results were stratified by gender, and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were applied to the findings.
The prevalence of long working hours was higher among informal workers for both men and women. Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) results revealed that informal employment (AORwomen = 1.53; 95% CI: 1.13-2.07 and AORmen = 1.55; 95% CI: 1.22-1.96) and long working hours (AORwomen = 1.23; 95% CI: 1.06-1.43 and AORmen = 1.14; 95% CI: 1.00-1.30) were independently associated with negative SRH. Significant interactions between long working hours and informal employment were observed. Among individuals with the same exposure profile, women who engaged in long working hours had a higher probability of reporting negative SRH compared to men.
The results of this study are in line with the literature, as differences between men and women in the likelihood of negative self-rated health were observed. The adverse health effects underscore the importance of implementing intersectoral actions to inform the revision of regulations concerning weekly working hours and the expansion of informal employment in low- and middle-income countries.
工作时间的规定受正式雇佣中的法律标准约束。尽管长时间工作与各种健康结果之间的关联已得到广泛研究，但针对巴西的证据有限。本研究的目的是在巴西全国具有代表性的劳动人口样本中，调查工作时间、就业状况与自我评估健康（SRH）之间的关联，并考虑到男女之间的差异。
本研究采用横断面研究，对巴西 33713 名劳动者进行自我评估健康（SRH）评估。我们将工作时间分为标准（每周 40-44 小时）和长时（每周>44 小时），并将就业状况分为正式和非正式，以此来检验工作时间与就业状况之间的关联。采用逻辑回归模型，调整了社会人口统计学、职业特征和健康行为因素。为不同暴露人群中的男性和女性计算了负面 SRH 的概率。根据性别对结果进行分层，并对研究结果应用了 95%置信区间（CI）。
男性和女性非正式劳动者中长时工作的比例均较高。调整后的优势比（AOR）结果表明，非正式就业（AORwomen=1.53；95%CI：1.13-2.07 和 AORmen=1.55；95%CI：1.22-1.96）和长时工作（AORwomen=1.23；95%CI：1.06-1.43 和 AORmen=1.14；95%CI：1.00-1.30）与负面 SRH 独立相关。长时工作和非正式就业之间存在显著的交互作用。在具有相同暴露特征的个体中，从事长时工作的女性比男性更有可能报告负面的 SRH。
本研究结果与文献一致，观察到男性和女性在负面自我评估健康的可能性方面存在差异。这些不良健康影响强调了实施跨部门行动的重要性，以告知每周工作时间法规的修订，并在中低收入国家扩大非正式就业。
