Prevalence and Risk Factors Analysis for Low Back Pain Among Occupational Groups in Key Industries of China

Background: With the acceleration of industrialization and the growth of population aging, LBP has become the main disease of life loss caused by disability, which brings huge economic burden to society and is a global public health problem that needs to be solved urgently. The purpose of this study is to carry out epidemiological investigation and research on a large sample of people in key industries in different regions of China, to find out the incidence and distribution characteristics of LBP in key industries in China, to explore the epidemic law, and to provide reference basis for alleviating the global public health problems caused by LBP.Methods: This study adopts the modified epidemiological cross-sectional survey method and the stratified cluster sampling method. From the representative enterprises in key industries in seven regions of North China, East China, central China, South China, southwest, northwest and Northeast China, all workers on duty and fulfill the criteria are taken as the research objects. The Chinese version of musculoskeletal disease questionnaire modified by a standardized Nordic Questionnaire was used to collect information, and a total of 57501 valid questionnaires were received. Descriptive statistics were used and multivariate logistic regression analysis (p < 0.05) was performed to explore the associations between musculoskeletal disorders and potential risk factors.Results: The annual incidence of LBP in key industries or workers in China is 16.4%. There was significant difference in the incidence of LBP among occupational groups in different industries (P < 0.05). The results of multivariate regression model show that always make the same movements with your trunk, working in the same positions at a high pace, trunk position, always turn round with your trunk, often work overtime, lift heavy loads (more than 20 kg), education level, staff shortage, working age (years), cigarette smoking, use vibration tools at work Body mass index (BMI), lift heavy loads (more than 5 kg) and age (years) were risk factors for LBP. Physical exercise, standing often at work and absolute resting time are protective factors.Conclusion: The incidence of LBP in key industries or workers in China is high. It is urgent to take relevant measures according to individual, occupational and psychosocial factors of LBP to reduce the adverse impact of LBP on workers' health.

Designing alternative scenarios for the provincial region development based on the scenario planning methodology

Subject. This article considers the issues of application of scenario planning techniques in the process of constructing alternative scenarios for the development of spatial socio-economic systems in the context of changes, complexity, and uncertainty. Objectives. The article aims to form a scenario planning algorithm for spatial socio-economic systems and its implementation in relation to the Mari El Republic. Methods. For the study, we used the systems approach and foresight techniques. Results. The article presents four alternative scenarios for the development of the provincial region: intensive, technological, moderately technological and pessimistic. The article presents four alternative scenarios for the development of the provincial region, namely, the intensive, technological, moderate technological, and worst-case ones. Conclusions and Relevance. The technological scenario for the provincial region’s development seems to be the most likely. It assumes moderately favorable prospects for attracting investment, which can stimulate the development of regional key industries. The proposed alternative scenarios can serve as a basis for the policy making by regional and municipal authorities.

Immigrant Essential Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic affected everyone in the United States, and essential workers across industries like health care, agriculture, retail, transportation and food supply were key to our survival. Immigrants, overrepresented in essential industries but largely invisible in the public eye, were critical to our ability to weather the pandemic and recover from it. But who are they? How did they do the riskiest of jobs in the riskiest of times? And how were both U.S.-born and foreign-born residents affected? This report explores the crucial contributions of immigrant essential workers, their impact on the lives of those around them, and how they were affected by the pandemic, public sentiment and policies. It further explores the contradiction of immigrants being essential to all of our well-being yet denied benefits, protections and rights given to most others. The pandemic revealed the significant value of immigrant essential workers to the health of all Americans. This report places renewed emphasis on their importance to national well-being. The report first provides a demographic picture of foreign-born workers in key industries during the pandemic using U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) data. Part I then gives a detailed narrative of immigrants’ experiences and contributions to the country’s perseverance during the pandemic based on interviews with immigrant essential workers in California, Minnesota and Texas, as well as with policy experts and community organizers from across the country. Interviewees include: ■ A food packing worker from Mexico who saw posters thanking doctors and grocery workers but not those like her working in the fields. ■ A retail worker from Argentina who refused the vaccine due to mistrust of the government. ■ A worker in a check cashing store from Eritrea who felt a “responsibility to be able to take care of people” lining up to pay their bills. Part II examines how federal and state policies, as well as increased public recognition of the value of essential workers, failed to address the needs and concerns of immigrants and their families. Both foreign-born and U.S.-born people felt the consequences. Policies kept foreign-trained health care workers out of hospitals when intensive care units were full. They created food and household supply shortages resulting in empty grocery shelves. They denied workplace protections to those doing the riskiest jobs during a crisis. While legislation and programs made some COVID-19 relief money available, much of it failed to reach the immigrant essential workers most in need. Part II also offers several examples of local and state initiatives that stepped in to remedy this. By looking more deeply at the crucial role of immigrant essential workers and the policies that affect them, this report offers insight into how the nation can better respond to the next public health crisis.

Economic and mathematical modeling of long-term development of national industry in the conditions of digitalization with the use of a production function

The article substantiates the expediency of modeling the development of national industry taking into account how the main interconnected key sectors of Ukrainian economy (not only processing and extractive industries, but also agriculture) are developing, as well as taking into account the factors that cause changes in this development over time. Based on previous researches, multiplicative production function has been chosen as the base for building the model, which was modified by taking into account the peculiarities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the specifics of individual industries in Ukraine. The economic-mathematical model of long-term development of specified branches of economy of Ukraine in the conditions of digitalization was proposed, in which the value added in the branch is the dependent variable, and the classic components of production functions (labor and the capital) are the independent variables, as well as the new factor – digitalization, and factors, specific to individual industries (world food price index for agriculture and world raw material price index for the extractive industry). A specific feature of the model is also the use of correction factors that reflect the change in the return of factors over time and increase the accuracy of calculations. In addition, separate models have been developed to calculate each of the main factors, based on the dynamics of investments, taking into account the recursive influence of value added, propensity to invest, the condition of the world economy and other specific factors. The calculation of value added in agriculture, extractive and processing industries of Ukraine in 2010-2019 was performed using the model. The adequacy of the model was validated based on the results of its parameterization, which showed sufficient accuracy for the implementation on practice, as the average absolute error of approximation ranges from 2.94% to 4.14% depending on the industry, with abnormal 2014-2015 excluded from the calculations. The value of GDP in the country as a whole was calculated on the basis of the results of value added calculations by key industries. Taking into account the fact that the proposed set of models does not include all industries, a regression model was used to calculate GDP, to which value added for the identified key industries was used as factor. It is established that the proposed model is quite accurate and can be used to calculate the GDP of Ukraine on the basis of value added calculations in agriculture, extractive and processing industries. Given the prospects of practical use of the model for management decisions, the elasticity of the main driving factor (investments) of the development of individual industries was assessed for the main variables, which, in particular, showed that the exchange rate of hryvnia to the US dollar has a negative impact on investments, and the most pronounced – on investments in fixed assets of the processing industry. This questions the widespread idea that the devaluation of the hryvnia stimulates domestic production.

A New Method of Identifying Key Industries: A Principal Component Analysis

This article using the principal components analysis identifies key industries and groups them into particular clusters. The data come from the US benchmark input-output tables of the years 2002, 2007, 2012 and the most recently published input-output table of the year 2019. We observe some intertemporal switches of industries both between and within the top clusters. The findings further suggest that structural change is a slow moving process and it takes time for some industries to move from one cluster to the other. This information may be proved important in the designation of effective economic policies by targeting particular industries and also for the stability properties of the economic system.JEL classifications: B24, B51, C67, D46, D57, E11, E32

Skills shortage may hit Australia's post-COVID growth

Significance The closing of internal and external borders in response to COVID-19 has heightened a longstanding skills deficit in key industries, with implications for wage levels, prices and broader economic growth. However, a general increase in immigrant numbers may not provide the skills that are needed. Impacts Labour shortfalls may delay government infrastructure projects that were designed to lead the post-pandemic economic recovery. Foreign investment may be affected by skills shortages in key areas such as mining and metallurgy. Debate on immigration levels could influence voting in the general election that is now likely to be held in April.

20. Mergers (1): introduction

This chapter briefly discusses the subject of merger control. Merger control is an important component of most, though not all, systems of competition law. Merger control has been under particular scrutiny in recent years, partly as a result of the rapid development of digital technologies and the emergence of powerful digital platforms. Separately there has been a certain backlash against the trend towards the globalisation of markets, and national governments, as well as the EU, have considered whether controls over the foreign acquisition of key industries are required, and whether the basic test of merger control – would a merger be harmful to competition? – should be supplemented by broader provisions enabling ‘the public interest’ to be taken into account. Against this background, the chapter begins by explaining what is meant by a ‘merger’ or ‘concentration’, the term used by the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR). It then proceeds to describe the different effects of mergers between independent firms from within and different production levels, the proliferation of systems of merger control, why firms merge, and the purpose of merger control. The final section of the chapter deals with how to design a system of merger control when a country decides, as a matter of policy, to adopt one.