Background: Social firms—a type of social enterprise—offer people with severe disabilities the possibility of employment and integration into the labor market. Since 01 January 2018, social firms in Germany are obligated to provide health promotion interventions for their employees. Therefore, the study aims to provide an overview of the current state of research on working conditions, coping strategies, work- and health-related outcomes, and health promotion interventions in social firms to derive recommendations for action. Methods: The databases PubMed, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PSYNDEX, CINAHL, and Web of Science were searched. The study selection was based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria in the time period between 2000 and 2019. The quality of the studies was critically appraised in a standardized way using the Mixed-Methods Appraisal Tool. Results: A total of 25 studies were included. The current state of research indicated that employees with disabilities were provided with several environmental resources like social support, flexibility, structured work tasks or options for training. A mix of environmental and personal resources impacted several work- and health-related outcomes like well-being, job satisfaction, productivity, work engagement, the motivation to work, or job tenure. Conclusions: There is a need for further (longitudinal) research concerning the work and health situation of employees working in social firms and the development of health promotion interventions.
Little is known about working conditions of social workers providing help in homeless and refugee aid. Therefore, the present study examined their work-related demands, job and personal resources as well as workplace violence, domain-specific demands, and gender-related differences. Job demands and resources were analyzed with regard to their association with job stress and job satisfaction. Two hundred and fifty-three social workers (69.2% female, 30.8% male) from four federal states in Germany (Berlin, Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania) took part in the cross-sectional quantitative online survey that included validated scales and exploratory items especially developed for the target group. Multiple regression analysis showed that resilience as a personal resource was a significant negative predictor of perceived job stress. Emotional demands were positively related with perceived job stress. Meaning of work and social support were strongly associated with job satisfaction. Language and bureaucratic barriers as well as being affected by clients’ experiences were the domain-specific demands named most often. The study offers insights into the work-related demands and resources and their respective impact on perceived job stress and job satisfaction experienced by social workers in refugee and homeless aid. In order to ensure health and safety for this occupational group, health promotion measures focusing on structural aspects are recommended.
Identification and evaluation of tools for implementing psychosocial risk assessment at the workplace Objective: One difficulty for companies in the implementation of psychosocial risk assessments in the workplace lies in the selection of suitable tools for assessing work-related psychosocial stress factors. The aim of the project was to identify psychosocial risk assessment tools and to develop and apply criteria for examining these tools. Methods: The first step was to conduct a search for tools by using the BAuA-Toolbox, PSYNDEX, Google Scholar and websites of accident insurance providers. The second step was to develop criteria for examining the inclusion of tools and criteria for further evaluation. Existing quality policies and feedback from experts were considered in the process. All the identified tools were then examined independently by two reviewers using the developed criteria. Results: Overall, 170 tools were identified. Six criteria that tools must meet in order to be included were developed: 1. goal orientation through the assessment of psychosocial stress, 2. and 3. user orientation through comprehensible information for the application and the analysis, 4. user orientation for respondents through, e.g. comprehensible questionnaires, 5. involvement of employees in the psychosocial risk assessment process and 6. empirically tested validity and reliability. Eleven further evaluation criteria regarding information on possible areas of application, consideration of work patterns from the Joint German Occupational Safety and Health Strategy (GDA) and support in deriving measures are used as information for the presentation of the tools. Overall, 51 tools were included. The majority determine psychosocial stress by means of a questionnaire (n = 24), workshop (n = 13) or observational interview (n = 12). Conclusions: The search results show the existing variety of psychosocial risk assessment tools in German-speaking countries. The criteria developed for examining these instruments can be confirmed by comparable projects and significantly reduced the number of tools included. These will be made available to companies in an online tool. Keywords: occupational safety and health – risk assessment – psychosocial stress – assessment tools – inclusion and evaluation criteria
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