Selected aspects of absence at work and work-related health problems in Polish enterprises

Workers’ working conditions, work-related health problems and sickness absence are interdependent factors. Both workers’ health problems and their absence are adverse events which generate significant costs for both Poland's Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) and employers. Despite the related burdens, it is difficult to assess the number of workers who experience work-related health problems, to indicate the share of those workers who have been unfit for work owing to such disorders and to indicate the types of workers’ disorders which are caused by factors the workers are exposed to in the working environment. This article presents the findings of surveys carried out in selected production and service-providing companies, assessing the scale and nature of work-related health problems and their links with workers’ sickness absence.