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Passenger safety is crucial to the mission of the taxi driver (TD). Nonetheless, the work environment of the TD is rapidly deteriorating against today’s declining economic conditions, deregulation, and countless health concerns. This study aims to understand “Sickness Presenteeism” and examine the factors that relate to TDs.
Methods
Using the Japanese version of the Stanford Presenteeism Scale (SPS.J), an investigation involving 752 TDs was undertaken in Japan between February and May of 2010. The survey items included: individual factors, job stressors, non-work factors and buffer factors. Of those surveyed, 517 men were selected as subjects of analysis. We conducted multiple regression analysis using a Work Impairment Score (WIS), which measures Sickness Presenteeism in dependent variables. Since the WIS calculates to what degree the ability to perform labor is impaired by the Primary Health Condition (PHC), the higher the value, the greater the influence on Presenteeism. This study was approved by the ethics committee of our University.
Results
The subjects had an average age of 57.1(±9.6). In all, 99.0% reported experiencing sicknesses. The highest PHC rate was in the category of "back or neck disorders" 52.4%, followed by "stomach or bowel disorders" 35.2%, and then " eye disorders" 33.7%. The categories of "assessment of the organizational characteristics," "rest on days off/early-morning shift days," “moods reflected in the manner of driving," "work life balance," "existence of a spouse" and "absence due to illness in a year" all showed significant correlations with Presenteeism.
Discussion
Driving long hours clearly influences not only sickness of TDs but also passenger safety. Furthermore, because “assessment of the organizational characteristics" turned out to be the strongest factor influencing Sickness Presenteeism of TDs, intervention toward the improvement of the conditions at the dispatching organization could be considered important.