Psychosocial work factors and sickness absence among young Danish workers with a disease history

BACKGROUND: Young workers with a disease history may be more sensitive to adverse work environment, which could lead to increased rates of sickness absence (SA). This study investigates the association between psychosocial work factors and SA among young Danish workers with a history of somatic or mental disorders (N = 39,772). METHODS: We included young workers (aged 15-30) with a history of hospital-diagnosed somatic or mental disorders before labor market entry (between 2010 and 2018). SA spells of any length (≥1 day) were measured in registers and psychosocial work factors were estimated on the occupational level using job exposure matrices. We separately estimated adjusted rate ratios (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for women and men using Poisson regressions. RESULTS: Among women, employment in occupations with high quantitative demands, low decision authority, high job strain, high emotional demands, or high work-related physical violence was associated with higher rates of SA. Employment in occupations with high vs. low emotional demands showed the strongest association with a RR of 1.56 (95% CI: 1.48-1.65). Among men, employment in occupations with low decision authority showed the strongest association (1.40 [1.32-1.48]). In contrast, employment in occupations with high quantitative demands or high job strain was associated with lower rates of SA. CONCLUSIONS: In a large nationwide sample of young workers with a history of somatic or mental disorders, we found several psychosocial work factors associated with SA at the job group level. Associations were overall similar to previously published results on all young workers. The results indicate that young workers with a history of somatic or mental disorders may not be more sensitive to adverse working conditions concerning the risk of SA and that preventive interventions, toward reducing SA, may have a similar impact regardless of disease history. KEY MESSAGES: • Several psychosocial working conditions were associated at the job group level with sickness absence in a nationwide sample of young workers with a disease history. • Associations were similar to previous results indicating that young workers with a disease history may not be more sensitive to adverse working conditions compared to the overall workforce.