Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2015 Dec 18:8:803.
doi: 10.1186/s13104-015-1781-9.

Analysis of work ability and work-related physical activity of employees in a medium-sized business

Christiane Wilke  1 , Philip Ashton  2 , Tobias Elis  3 , Bianca Biallas  4 , Ingo Froböse  5
Affiliations

Analysis of work ability and work-related physical activity of employees in a medium-sized business

Christiane Wilke et al. BMC Res Notes. .

Abstract

Background: Work-related physical activity (PA) and work ability are of growing importance in modern working society. There is evidence for age- and job-related differences regarding PA and work ability. This study analyses work ability and work-related PA of employees in a medium-sized business regarding age and occupation.

Methods: The total sample consists of 148 employees (116 men-78.38% of the sample-and 32 women, accounting for 21.62%; mean age: 40.85 ± 10.07 years). 100 subjects (67.57%) are white-collar workers (WC), and 48 (32.43%) are blue-collar workers (BC). Work ability is measured using the work ability index, and physical activity is obtained via the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire.

Results: Work ability shows significant differences regarding occupation (p = 0.001) but not regarding age. Further, significant differences are found for work-related PA concerning occupation (p < 0.0001), but again not for age. Overall, more than half of all subjects meet the current guidelines for physical activity.

Conclusion: Work ability is rated as good, yet, a special focus should lie on the promotion during early and late working life. Also, there is still a lack of evidence on the level of work-related PA. Considering work-related PA could add to meeting current activity recommendations.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Lange A. Bewältigung von Herausforderungen des demografischen Wandels: Voraussetzungen und Ergebnisse von Demografiemanagement. Erkenntnisse aus eine Reihe von Abschlussarbeiten (No. 12). Working Paper Series, Chair of Organization, Human Resource and General Management, Brandenburg University of Technology, 2010.
    1. Europäische Kommission. Grünbuch. Angesichts des demographischen Wandels—eine neue Solidarität zwischen den Generationen. Brüssel; 2005.
    1. Bechmann S, Dahms V, Tschersich N, Frei M, Leber U, Schwengler B. Fachkräfte und unbesetzte Stellen in einer alternden Gesellschaft: Problemlagen und betriebliche Reaktionen (No. 201213). Institut fur Arbeitsmarkt-und Berufsforschung (IAB),Nürnberg; 2012.
    1. Froböse I, Wilke C, Ashton P. Gesundheitsmanagement. In: Allmer H, Becker R, editors. Betriebliches Gesundheitsmanagement und Prävention arbeitsbedingter Gesundheitsverfahren, Band 36—Demographischer Wandel. Grundlagen, Ergebnisse, Maßnahmen. Essen: BKK Bundesverband; 2012.
    1. Ilmarinen J, Tuomi K. Past, present and future of work ability. In: Proceedings of the 1st International Symposium on Work Ability, Helsinki; 2004.

LinkOut - more resources