Employmentweb_low

eMployMent relations and health inequalities: pathways and MechanisMs
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PaThWays BeTWeen WorKinG condiTions and socioeconoMic
healTh ineQualiTies
The most important pathway linking working conditions to health
inequalities runs through the differential distribution of adverse
working conditions among workers (siegrist & Theorell, 2006).
some typical “exposure clusters” may be located in the general
working population (Vanroelen, Moors, levecque, & louckx, 2010).
often traditional material hazards are found to cohere, together with
organisational features, such as low control over work tasks and
atypical schedules or employment conditions (Passchier-Vermeer &
Passchier, 2000). other distinctive patterns are seen for femaledominated
human service occupations (in which high physical
demands are linked with high emotional demands and work
schedule flexibility, and highly specialised and skilled jobs), which
are characterised by high psychological demands (söderfelt et al.,
1996; 1997; Burchell, day, & hudson, 1999; Vanroelen et al., 2010).
These different clusters have strong links with social positions. in
addition, patterns in the distribution of working conditions according
to the position of countries in the World-system can be seen.
another pathway is constituted by social differences in
susceptibility to the adverse effects of working conditions. finally,
there is an additive pathway running through employment
conditions. Workers employed in non-standard conditions are at a
higher risk of encountering more adverse working conditions.
differential exposure to adverse working conditions
There are clear international differences in the division of harmful
working conditions. The relative political strengths of forces in the
market (corporations, institutions and unions), government (parties)
and society (community and its forms of organisation) in a country are
key determinants of the development of laws, regulations and social
protection, which influence working conditions. in the context of
globalisation, a lack of barriers to move production from one country
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