Background: Shift work, particularly in night shifts, has been linked to adverse health outcomes, including disruptions in circadian rhythms that may contribute to metabolic disorders. However, sexrelated differences in the impact of night shift work on cardiometabolic health remain understudied.This study sought to examine the relationship between night shift work and cardiometabolic health in young adults, identifying potential sex-related differences. Methods: In this prospective cohort study, a total of 3201 participants (mean age: 22.08 years, 59.9% women) were analyzed over a 17-year period. Relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to evaluate the impact of night shift work on cardiometabolic health outcomes, including obesity, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and metabolic syndrome (MetS). Results: At Wave V, 74.7% of participants were diagnosed with overweight/obesity, 51.8% with abdominal obesity, 15.5% with hyperlipidemia, 29.1% with hypertension, 8.3% with type 2 diabetes, and 20.9% with MetS. Night shift work was associated with an increased risk of obesity and abdominal obesity in women (RR = 1.99, 95% CI: 1.08 to 3.65 and RR = 1.60, 95% CI: 1.07 to 2.56, respectively) but not in men. Women also showed an elevated risk of diabetes (RR = 2.69, 95% CI: 1.49 to 4.86), whereas no significant relationship was identified in men. Night shift work was not significantly associated with hypertension and MetS in either men or women. Conclusion Women working night shifts may benefit from targeted interventions for cardiometabolic health, particularly in managing weight and preventing diabetes, while men did not exhibit similar associations.

Background: The projected expansion of an aging United States (US) workforce prompts further evaluation of the potential impact of work on cognitive health. This study aimed to investigate longitudinal associations of reward and effort at work with subjective memory among US older workers. Methods: Data were obtained from the population-based Health and Retirement Study. At the 2006 —2008 baseline, effort and reward were measured using hypotheses based on the effort-reward imbalance (ERI) model. A subjective memory summary score that was composed of two items, in which higher scores indicated better subjective memory, was assessed biennially between the baseline and 2018. Generalized estimating equations analyzed longitudinal associations of effort and reward categories with changes in subjective memory between the baseline and follow-ups. Demographic, socioeconomic, lifestyle, health, and work covariates were adjusted for in linear regression models.Supplementary analyses explored the associations of ERI components with each of the two items that formed the subjective memory summary score. Results: Among 3,497 workers aged 50 years and older, after covariate adjustments, high reward was significantly associated with better subjective memory (regression coefficient: 0.15 [95% confidence interval: 0.07, 0.23], p < 0.001). Compared to the combination of “low effort and low reward,” other effort-reward combinations were also associated with increased subjective memory (p < 0.05). Supplementary analyses demonstrated significant positive associations with independent high reward and ERI combinations. High effort was positively related to subjective memory, although the association was not significant after adjustments. Conclusion Work-related reward, independently and in combination with effort, may contribute to improved subjective memory among US older workers.

Background: Working environment authorities (WEAs) are increasingly challenged with addressing psychosocial and ergonomic risks. In response to this, the Danish Government initiated the agreement to problem-solve (ATP) initiative. The objective of this study is to examine whether the dialogue-based ATP inspection practice is an effective means to address and target psychosocial and ergonomic risk factors and to discuss this in relation to more traditional inspection injunctions. Methods: The study utilizes data provided by the WEA including information on participating enterprise’s registered industry, number of employees, type of occupational safety and health (OSH) problem, fulfillment status, and sector (public or private). The data and information regarding other injunctions given by labor inspectors were also made available by the WEA, allowing for comparison between inspection practices. Results: 44% of ATPs addressed psychosocial risks, 31% addressed ergonomic issues. In particular, ATP issues include heavy lifting (19%), quantitative workload and time pressure (13%), emotional demands (9%), violence and traumatic events (7%), sexual harassment, bullying and insults (7%), ergonomic work positions and movement (6%), as well as unclear or contradictory demands (4%). These are some of the exact psychosocial and ergonomic OSH issues that inspectorates have struggled to address, and this contrasts other types of injunctions. Conclusion The ATP initiative provides an approach to target the otherwise elusive psychosocial and ergonomic OSH risks. As such, it may be a tool for improving inspection practices and the prevention of psychosocial OSH problems. However, future research should investigate the outcomes of dialoguebased inspection practices in terms of sickness absence, organizational trust, psychosocial safety climate, physical exertion, accidents, or the sustainability of measures, as well as how ATPs may be improved to function even more effectively.

Background: The purpose was to investigate the association between the working hour characteristics of irregular working hours and the first incident occupational accident in the retail sector. Methods: Employer-owned register data of daily working hours and the first incident occupational accidents in 2021-2023 were used. The final sample of 470 employees was analyzed using a casecrossover design to obtain odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for the seven-day periods of working hours preceding the accidents. Results: The weekly working hours (OR: 1.02-1.03, 95% CI: 1.00-1.08), shift length (OR: 10.12-12.47, 95% CI: 4.73- 32.9), and evening shifts (OR: 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01-1.04) were associated with an increased likelihood of occupational accidents among both part- and full-time employees. Early morning (OR:1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.04) and morning (OR: 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01-1.03) shifts, and the percentage of short (<4 hour) shifts (OR: 1.06, 95% CI: 1.01-1.12) increased the likelihood of occupational accidents among parttime employees, and the number of consecutive work shifts (OR: 1.55, 95% CI: 1.04-2.30) among fulltime employees. Conclusion Working evenings and the length of work shifts, or weekly working hours, even for 7 days, were associated with an increased likelihood of occupational accidents among both part-time and fulltime employees. Since early morning and morning shifts showed an increased risk among part-time employees, special attention should be paid to them. Thus, shift scheduling in the retail sector merits attention to regularity and avoidance of long or early shifts, supplemented with safety instructions to ensure the health and safety of employees.

Background: Shift work (SW) can contribute to metabolic disorders affecting biological rhythms, inducing sleep deprivation, decreasing the resting metabolic rate, and changing dietary habits and eating behaviors. This study aims to assess the relationship of SW on physical and metabolic parameters, including the metabolic syndrome (MetS), and the contributing role of sleep quality, chronotype, chrononutrition, and the Mediterranean diet. Methods: Shift and nonshift workers underwent medical examinations and lab tests. MetS was diagnosed using the National Cholesterol Education Program’s Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Chrononutrition Profile, Morning-Eveningness, and Prevention through Mediterranean Diet questionnaires were used to explore factors potentially affecting the development of metabolic disorders. Results: Shift (n = 172) and nonshift workers (n = 177), primarily employed in healthcare and social activities and in the education and administrative sectors, were enrolled. Mean systolic blood pressure levels were significantly higher in shift workers compared to the daytime counterpart (121.0 ± 12.9 vs.117.5 ± 13.2 mmHg, p = 0.013). MetS was significantly more frequent in the former group (25.6% vs.13.7%, p = 0.006). Higher percentages of shift workers compared to daytime workers, had poor quality of sleep (37.8% vs. 27.1%, p = 0.033), an evening chronotype (14% vs. 6.8%, p = 0.010), and high adherence to the Mediterranean diet (65.7% vs. 43.5%, p < 0.001), while no differences emerged for the chrononutrition profile. SW represents a risk factor for MetS, although its development results from the interaction of personal lifestyle, dietary habits, chronotype, chrononutrition, sleep quality, and occupational factors. Conclusion In the perspective of the Total Worker Health approach to workplace safety, health, and well-being, such an interplay should be addressed.

Background: The well-being of disaster responders is just as important as that of disaster victims as maintaining responders’ health is essential for the effective disaster response. This study aimed to identify the key factors contributing to fatigue in disaster responders. Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data from disaster responders deployed during the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake in Ishikawa prefecture, Japan. Data were collected using the health management version of the Japanese Surveillance in Post-Extreme Emergencies and Disasters app from January to March 2024. Associations between contributing factors including problems in the work environment, type of work activity, and occupation, and self-reported fatigue score were examined using the t-tests, analysis of variance, and multivariable regression analysis. Results: We analyzed 15,067 data entries from disaster responders. Fatigue levels among disaster responders were generally low, with 73.7% of scores between 1 and 3 during the first phase and 82.3% during the second phase. Fatigue was significantly higher in the early response phase (β = 0.32, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.27—0.37) and among logisticians (β = 0.23, 95% CI: 0.18—0.28) and Health Emergency Operations Center staff (β = 0.20, 95% CI: 0.14—0.25) than among nonlogisticians and non —Health Emergency Operations Center staff members. Problems in the work environment had the largest effects: inability to take meals and breaks increased fatigue by 1.82 points (95% CI: 1.56—2.07), and unclear tasks or command structures by 0.82 points (95% CI: 0.57—1.06). Conclusion This study underscores the importance of establishing a structured command system, strengthening responder training and improving working conditions to safeguard responder well-being.

Background: This study examines whether stronger corporate governance is associated with workplace mental health practices and whether this relationship is mediated by a structured sequence of occupational safety and health (OSH) engagement: recognition, goal-setting, and implementation. Methods: We analyzed 134 listed companies in Taiwan that published sustainability reports and received corporate governance evaluations between 2014 and 2023. Governance scores―based on shareholder rights, board functioning, transparency, and sustainability―were dichotomized into high vs. low categories. Workplace mental health practices were measured using 24 binary indicators across planning, provision, and reporting. OSH engagement was conceptualized in three stages based on Global Reporting Initiative 403 guidelines, with composite indicators derived via grouped weighted quantile sum regression. Associations were analyzed using generalized linear mixed-effects and serial mediation models. Results: Compared to companies ranked low in corporate governance, those ranked high had a higher likelihood of adopting mental health practices. OSH goal-setting and implementation showed significant positive associations, whereas recognition did not. Serial mediation analysis showed that 83% of the total effect of corporate governance on mental health practices was direct, while 17% was mediated through structured OSH engagement, primarily via implementation. Recognition showed a nonsignificant effect but initiated significant sequential pathways via goal-setting and implementation.Goal-setting functioned as a bridge within these chains. Conclusion Corporate governance plays a central role in advancing workplace mental health practices.While most effects are direct, structured OSH engagement helps translate governance priorities into sustained organizational actions that embed mental health into routine practice.