Background
on stress, work and illness
…and gender
Research of the last years has shown an additional dimension: MSD
and RSI are a gender issue. The European Foundation’s 1996
European Union-wide survey found that women are more likely than
men to undertake repetitive tasks or repetitive work and are more
likely to have difficulty taking breaks, days off or holidays. US
figures show a similar trend and reveal that relatively more women
are suffering because of the repetitive jobs they do. At the same
time the research in Europe and North America shows that women have
fewer compensated injuries and illnesses because the compensation
systems have often been set up in response to problems in jobs traditionally
held by men. The types of health problems women have are not recognized
or compensated, creating vicious circles where women’s occupational
health problems are not taken seriously, therefore not recognised.
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