07/06/2008
The French Labour ministry has just published an updated in-depth analysis of the French 2003 SUMER survey. Women seem to be more exposed than men to "job strain", which puts their health at risk, and where the "margin of manoeuvre", job latitude, does not allow them to cope with the expectations they feel at work. Blue-collar and white-collar workers can be equally concerned by job strain, as well as high-skilled workers. While workers feel more exposed to reduced job latitude, managers are exposed to higher demands.

These results were obtained by making use of a questionnaire based on the “Karasek model”, one of the most frequently used tools to evaluate stress risks at work.

A new round of the SUMER survey is expected to be launched in 2008.

• The report (in French)

Source: EU OSHA