Labour in Pandemic Capitalism

Abstract This article aims to point out some of the main destructive trends in relation to the working class that, although not caused by the covid-19 pandemic, are being widely intensified amid this health crisis. Thus, the intention is to show that the antisocial metabolism of the capital system has been developing ‘laboratories’ to experiment with labour, driven by large corporations and digital platforms, of which ‘Uberised work’ and remote working from home are examples, and that these trends have tended to expand in the post-pandemic period, further aggravating the precarious conditions of the working class on a global scale. Long working hours, intense forms of exploitation and the complete lack of labour rights constitute some of the main proofs of these precarious conditions, resulting in the elimination of large sectors of the working class that have become superfluous and disposable, thus increasing unemployment.

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Long working hours and alcohol use: systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies and unpublished individual participant data

BMJ ◽

10.1136/bmj.g7772 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 350 (jan12 13) ◽

pp. g7772-g7772 ◽

Cited By ~ 77

Author(s):

M. Virtanen ◽

M. Jokela ◽

S. T. Nyberg ◽

I. E. H. Madsen ◽

T. Lallukka ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Alcohol Use ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Working Hours ◽

Individual Participant Data ◽

Long Working Hours ◽

Individual Participant

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Impact of Long Working Hours and Shift Work on Perceived Unmet Dental Need: A Panel Study

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18062939 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (6) ◽

pp. 2939

Author(s):

Hye-Eun Lee ◽

Nam-Hee Kim ◽

Tae-Won Jang ◽

Ichiro Kawachi

Keyword(s):

Shift Work ◽

Dental Care ◽

Fixed Effects ◽

Panel Study ◽

Working Hours ◽

Care Needs ◽

Long Working Hours ◽

Care Services ◽

Dental Care Needs ◽

Dental Needs

This study investigates whether workers with long working hours as well as shift workers perceive higher unmet dental care needs, and whether there is a gender difference in the associations. We used the Korea Health Panel (2009, 2011–2014) involving 20,451 person-wave observations from 5567 individuals. Perceived unmet dental care needs was defined when the participants reported that they perceived a need for dental treatment or check-up but had failed to receive dental care services during the past year. Fixed effects logit models were applied to examine how changes in weekly working hours or shift work status were linked to changes in perceived unmet dental needs within each individual. Among participants, 15.9–24.7% reported perceived unmet dental needs and the most common reason was time scarcity. We found that long working hours (>52 h/week) was significantly associated with perceived unmet dental needs due to time scarcity in both men (OR = 1.42, 95% CI 1.13–1.78) and women (OR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.03–1.79) compared workers working 40–52 h per week. Shift work was also a significant risk factor, but only in women (OR = 1.57, 95% CI 1.06–2.32). These findings provide evidence for labor policies to reduce working hours in order to improve access to dental care services.

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Impact of Shift Work and Long Working Hours on Worker Cognitive Functions: Current Evidence and Future Research Needs

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18126540 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (12) ◽

pp. 6540

Author(s):

Veruscka Leso ◽

Luca Fontana ◽

Angela Caturano ◽

Ilaria Vetrani ◽

Mauro Fedele ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Circadian Rhythm ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Sleep Disturbances ◽

Working Hours ◽

Night Work ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Future Research ◽

Negative Effects ◽

Long Working Hours ◽

Main Determinants

Particular working conditions and/or organization of working time may cause important sleep disturbances that have been proposed to be predictive of cognitive decline. In this regard, circadian rhythm misalignment induced by exposure to night work or long working hours would be responsible for cognitive impairment. Nevertheless, evidence supporting this correlation is limited and several issues still need to be elucidated. In this regard, we conducted a systematic review to evaluate the association between shift/night work and cognitive impairment and address its main determinants. Information provided by the reviewed studies suggested that night work might have serious immediate negative effects especially on cognitive domains related to attention, memory and response inhibition. Furthermore, cognitive performance would progressively worsen over consecutive night shifts or following exposure to very long work shifts. Otherwise, conflicting results emerged regarding the possible etiological role that night work chronic exposure would have on cognitive impairment. Therefore, circadian rhythm desynchronization, lack of sleep and fatigue resulting from night work may negatively impact worker’s cognitive efficiency. However, in light of the considerable methodological variability of the reviewed studies, we proposed to develop a standardized research and evaluation strategy in order to obtain a better and comprehensive understanding of this topic.

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A Generalized Structural Equation Model Approach to Long Working Hours and Near-Misses among Healthcare Professionals in Japan

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18137154 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (13) ◽

pp. 7154

Author(s):

Tatsuhiko Anzai ◽

Takashi Yamauchi ◽

Masaki Ozawa ◽

Kunihiko Takahashi

Keyword(s):

Indirect Effects ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Healthcare Professionals ◽

Sleep Problems ◽

Working Hours ◽

Near Miss ◽

Long Working Hours ◽

Near Misses ◽

Related Stress ◽

Job Related Stress

(1) Background: Near-miss incidents are the foundation of major injuries. They are warning signs that loss is imminent. Long working hours are a risk factor for near-misses along with sleep problems, job-related stress, and depressive symptoms. This study aimed to evaluate the indirect effects of long working hours via mediating variables on near-miss occurrences among Japanese healthcare professionals. (2) Methods: 1490 Japanese healthcare professionals’ reports from a web-based survey of workers in October 2018 were analyzed to evaluate total, direct, and indirect effects of long working hours on near-misses. We applied a generalized structural equation model with three mediating variables: sleep problems, job-related stress, and depressive symptoms. (3) Results: The total effect and direct effect of the categories of working hours longer than 41 h per week (h/w) for occurrence of near-misses were not significantly higher than that of 35–40 h/w. However, for indirect effects on occurrence of near-misses that first passed through job-related stress, there were higher reports for each category compared to 35–40 h/w, with odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) of OR = 1.12, 95% CI (1.07, 1.21) for 41–50 h/w; 1.25, (1.14, 1.41) for 51–60 h/w; and 1.31, (1.18, 1.51) for ≥ 61 h/w. (4) Conclusion: The results suggest that reducing working hours might improve job-related stress, which could reduce near-misses and prevent injuries.

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Long working hours associated with elevated ambulatory blood pressure among female and male white-collar workers over a 2.5-year follow-up

Journal of Human Hypertension ◽

10.1038/s41371-021-00499-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Mahée Gilbert-Ouimet ◽

Xavier Trudel ◽

Denis Talbot ◽

Michel Vézina ◽

Alain Milot ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Blood Pressure ◽

Ambulatory Blood Pressure ◽

Working Hours ◽

White Collar ◽

Long Working Hours ◽

White Collar Workers

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Cross-sectional association between long working hours and liver function: the Kangbuk Samsung Health Study

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2020-041595 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (12) ◽

pp. e041595

Author(s):

Eunchan Mun ◽

Woncheol Lee ◽

Min-Woo Nam ◽

Hyun-Il Kim ◽

Hyeongcheol Kim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

General Population ◽

Hepatitis B ◽

Liver Function ◽

South Korea ◽

Hepatitis B Surface Antigen ◽

Working Hours ◽

Health Study ◽

Health Examination ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Long Working Hours

ObjectivesAlthough the effects of long working hours on liver function remain unclear, in South Korea, there is a social perception that long working hours are associated with poor liver function. Thus, long working hours have recently become a major issue. This study aimed to determine the association between long working hours and liver function, as indicated by the alanine transaminase (ALT) levels.DesignCross-sectional study.SettingLarge university hospitals in Seoul and Suwon, South Korea.ParticipantsWorkers in formal employment who underwent a comprehensive health examination at the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Total Healthcare Centre clinics in Seoul and Suwon, South Korea, between January 2011 and December 2018. Of the 386 488 participants, 212 421 met the inclusion criteria and were included in the analysis.Primary outcome measureALT elevation.ResultsThe participants were predominantly well-educated (86.1%), male (69.3%) and in their 30s (49.6%). In total, 13.4% of the participants presented ALT elevation (>40 IU/L). There was no significant association between working hours and ALT elevation in the general population and in the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-negative group. Conversely, in the HBsAg-positive group, working >60 hours per week compared with 35–40 hours per week was significantly associated with ALT elevation. The association was more pronounced in those with ALT levels >80 IU/L (OR 1.94, 95% CI 1.24 to 3.01) than in those with ALT levels >40 IU/L (OR: 1.45, 95% CI 1.20 to 1.75). The p values for trend were <0.05.ConclusionsLong working hours were associated with ALT elevation only in hepatitis B virus carriers and not in the general population. Provided that there is adherence to the legal working hours, there is no need to further restrict working hours for liver health, irrespective of HBsAg status.

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