Long-term sickness absence during pregnancy and the gender balance of workplaces
Engelsk titel: Long-term sickness absence during pregnancy and the gender balance of workplaces
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Författare:
Melsom, Anne M
Email: a.m.melsom@sosgeo.uio.no
Språk: Eng
Antal referenser: 30
Dokumenttyp:
Artikel
UI-nummer: 15069442
Sammanfattning
Aims: This study addresses how the gender composition of workplaces affects pregnant
women’s sickness absence. It also assesses whether an observed association may be explaine by
differential selection to female- or male-dominated workplaces. Methods: The analyses are based on
Norwegian registry data from 2003-2011. Using Poisson regressions with detailed control for
occupational categories, I examine whether the number of absence days are associated with the
proportion of females at the workplace. I address possible selection effects by Poisson regressions
with fixed individual effects using only within-individual variation on women with two or more
pregnancies during the time window. Results: The analyses indicate a positive and significant
relationship between the female proportion in workplaces and sickness absence rates during
pregnancy. Analyses limited to within-individual variation also show positive and significant effects
of similar strength, indicating that the observed relationship is not due to differential selection of
absence-prone pregnant workers to female-dominated workplaces. Conclusions: The proportion of
female individuals at workplaces is positively associated with sickness absence rates during
pregnancy. This association is not likely explained by occupational nor individual characteristics.
The results are consistent with absence culture theory and more lenient norms concerning sickness
absence during pregnancy at female-dominated workplaces.