The clustering of health-related occupational stressors among contemporary wage-earners

Introduction. In this study, a typology is imposed upon a sample of wage-earners, based on their exposure to a broad number of occupational stressors: quantitative, emotional and physical demands, repetitive movements of hands and arms, atypical work schedules, low job control, the quality of relationships with superiors, job insecurity and bullying behaviour. Subsequently, associations between this typology and measures of emotional problems (an indicator of mental health) and musculoskeletal complaints are tested. Methods. Logistic regression and a latent class cluster analysis are performed on a representative sample of 10,074 Flemish (Belgian) employees. The data are derived from the Flemish Quality of Work Monitor, which was originated by the Socio-Economic Council of Flanders (SERV) in 2004. Results. The analyses are yielding five clusters, representing different types of occupational situations. The clusters are labelled as: "Low stress", "high stress", "manual-passive", "human contact" and "high demand". The different clusters are each showing a clear socio-economic distribution. In addition, they are significantly associated with emotional problems and musculoskeletal complaints. The "high stress-cluster" is related to the most problematic outcomes for both health indicators. The "low stress-cluster" is related to the lowest prevalence of emotional problems and musculoskeletal complaints, while the other clusters are showing in-between positions in terms their health-association. In wage-earners belonging to both higher and lower socio-economic positions specific health-damaging occupational stress-clusters are more prevalent. Nevertheless, the "high stress-cluster" - which is the most precarious in terms of health outcomes - is more prevalent in workers with a lower socio-economic position. Conclusion. Our findings are suggesting a complex relationship between occupational stressors and socio-economic health variations.