Introduction The perception of psychosocial risks exposes workers to develop work-related stress. Recently the attention of scientific research has focused on a psychosocial risk already identified as “job insecurity” that regards the “overall concern about the continued existence of the job in the future” and that also depends on worker's perception, different for each gender. Aim of the Study The aim of this cross sectional study is to show if job insecurity, in the form of temporary contracts, can influence the perception of psychosocial risks and therefore increase worker's vulnerability to work-related stress and how the magnitude of this effect differs between genders. Materials and Methods 338 administrative technical workers (113 males and 225 females) were administered a questionnaire, enquiring contract typology (permanent or temporary contracts), and the Health Safety Executive questionnaire to assess work-related stress. The Health Safety Executive Analysis Tool software was used to process collected questionnaires and the Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used to evaluate the statistical significance of the differences obtained. Results Workers with temporary contracts obtained lower scores than workers with permanent contracts in all the domains explored by the Health Safety Executive Analysis questionnaire, statistically significant (P<0,05). The female workers obtained lower scores than male workers in all domains explored by the Health Safety Executive questionnaire. Conclusions Authors conclude that perception of psychosocial risks can be influenced by job insecurity, in the form of temporary contracts, and increases worker's vulnerability to work-related stress and differs between genders.

Background Quality of working life is the result of many factors inherent in the workplace environment, especially in terms of exposure to psychosocial risks. Objectives The purpose of this study is to assess the quality of life with special attention to gender differences. Methods The HSE-IT questionnaire and the WHO-5 Well-Being Index were administered to a group of workers (74 males and 33 females). The authors also used Cronbach's alpha test to assess the internal consistency of both questionnaires and the Mann–Whitney test to evaluate the significance of gender differences in both questionnaires. Results The HSE-IT highlighted the existence of work-related stress in all the population with a critical perception regarding the domain “Relationships.” Furthermore, gender analysis highlighted the presence of two additional domains in the female population: “Demand” (p = 0,002) and “Support from Managers” (p = 0,287). The WHO-5 highlighted a well-being level below the standard cut-off point with a significant gender difference (p = 0.009) for males (18, SD = 6) as compared to females (14, SD = 6,4). Cronbach's alpha values indicated a high level of internal consistency for both of our scales. Conclusions The risk assessment of quality of working life should take into due account the individual characteristics of workers, with special attention to gender.

COVID-19 was declared a pandemic on March 12, 2020. Italy has been the most affected country in the world, right after China. Healthcare workers (HCWs) were among the hardest hit by this event from both a working and psychological point of view. The aim of this web-based cross-sectional study is to assess the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on Italian Occupational Physicians’ well-being and psychological distress, in relation to demographic and occupational characteristic, lifestyle and habits during the lockdown period. We conducted a web-based cross-sectional survey questionnaire from April 1 to April 21st, 2020. To evaluate the level of psychological distress and the level of well-being, the general Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) and the WHO-5 Wellbeing Index were utilized. Since the statistical assumptions were respected, we proceeded with an analysis of variance (ANOVA) to ascertain the differences between the averages of the scores of the GHQ-12. Doctors who live in the most affected regions have a prevalence of psychological distress higher than their colleagues from the rest of Italy. ANOVA shows significant differences relating to the female gender, and to the life changes provoked by the lockdown for example not feeling sheltered at home or suffering from loneliness. This study showed a high prevalence of psychological distress in occupational physicians. To prevent the occurrence of mental disorders among Occupational Physicians, it is urgent to put in place policies of psychological support and well-being preservation.

PurposeEmployees in the private, public, and third sectors have experienced an increase in stress over the years. Amongst the sectors, people working in hospitals and other healthcare facilities were put under severe stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Indeed, the World Health Organisation has clearly stated that defending people's mental health at this particular time of restless pandemic growth is an absolute necessity. The purpose of this article is to assess the perceived work-related stress (WRS) of healthcare workers (HCWs) as a result of the spread of COVID-19, as well as how a leadership role can help to reduce WRS.Design/methodology/approachBased on a multiple case study approach applied to two Italian health-care facilities, the questionnaire results were subjected to a regression analysis.FindingsThe results show an association in HCWs between the perception of supportive leadership and the perception of negative psychosocial risks whose exposure can lead to manifestation of WRS during COVID-19 pandemic.Originality/valueThe study addresses the role that the perception of supportive leadership can play in reducing exposure to occupational psychosocial risks in a sample of healthcare professionals.

This paper proposes a numerical model that can be used for theoretical and experimental dynamic characterization of historical colonnade courtyards. Such an architectural element appears often in buildings of historical heritage and, especially under seismic excitation, it represents the most vulnerable structural part. Therefore, it is very important to have reliable as well as simple models available for vulnerability analysis, to evaluate different reinforcing systems if needed, or to plan dynamic characterization tests or monitoring campaigns, as in the present case. Chiaramonte Palace, a wonderful example of the historical heritage of Palermo, is investigated as case study. Firstly, a review of the restoration and structural consolidation works made over the years is presented, as fundamental step towards the knowledge of any existing structural system. Then the acquired information are used to propose a simplified finite element model that properly accounts for the interaction with the surrounding part of the building, and that can be easily calibrated on the basis of estimated or measured vibration periods.