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. 2017 Feb;90(2):161-168.
doi: 10.1007/s00420-016-1180-0. Epub 2016 Nov 4.

Work environment and safety climate in the Swedish merchant fleet

Karl Forsell  1   2 , Helena Eriksson  3 , Bengt Järvholm  4 , Monica Lundh  5 , Eva Andersson  3 , Ralph Nilsson  3
Affiliations

Work environment and safety climate in the Swedish merchant fleet

Karl Forsell et al. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 2017 Feb.

Abstract

Purpose: To get knowledge of the work environment for seafarers sailing under the Swedish flag, in terms of safety climate, ergonomical, chemical and psychosocial exposures, and the seafarers self-rated health and work ability.

Methods: A Web-based questionnaire was sent to all seafarers with a personal e-mail address in the Swedish Maritime Registry (N = 5608). Comparisons were made mainly within the study population, using Student's t test, prevalence odds ratios and logistic regressions with 95% confidence intervals.

Results: The response rate was 35% (N = 1972; 10% women, 90% men), with 61% of the respondents working on deck, 31% in the engine room and 7% in the catering/service department (1% not classifiable). Strain on neck, arm or back and heavy lifting were associated with female gender (p = 0.0001) and younger age (below or above 30 years of age, p < 0.0001). Exposures to exhausts, oils and dust were commonly reported. Major work problems were noise, risk of an accident and vibrations from the hull of the ship. The safety climate was high in comparison with that in land-based occupations. One-fourth had experienced personal harassment or bullying during last year of service.

Conclusions: Noise, risk of accidents, hand/arm and whole-body vibrations and psychosocial factors such as harassment were commonly reported work environment problems among seafarers within the Swedish merchant fleet.

Keywords: Safety; Seafarers; Web-based survey; Work environment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Work problems for each work category on board a merchant ship: deck (a), engine (b) and service (c). Percentage (%) for each exposure reported as a work problem
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Work problems for each work category on board a merchant ship: deck (a), engine (b) and service (c). Percentage (%) for each exposure reported as a work problem
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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