Documents Benach, Joan 46 results

At the beginning of the 21st century, the emergence of new forms of work organization are transforming what had become standard types of work arrangements in industrialized countries. In this new labor market environment, new firms, types of workers, and risk factors are powerfully emerging. Contrary to common belief, emergent occupational health hazards should not be approached only as "technical" or "economic" value-free problems. Instead, many of the challenges faced by occupational health policy makers are predominantly related to professional values and to the political ideologies and economic interests of key stakeholders in the decision-making process. In this paper some of the key principles leading to efficient and equitable occupational health policies in the new work environment are discussed. An alternative is also proposed for dealing with the conditions and settings needed to meet the new challenges related to establishing an effective occupational health policy.

"La fin du régime fasciste de Franco en 1977, après quarante années de dictature, a marqué le coup d'envoi d'une transition politique qui s'est concrétisée par une constitution démocratique en 1978. L'Espagne a connu une forte décentralisation politique ces vingt dernières années, qui a vu la création de 17 régions disposant d'une impor-tante autonomie législative et politique, notamment en matière de santé, ce qui signifie que les politiques publiques peu-vent varier selon les régions. ..."

"Pensamos que vivimos en una edad de oro de la historia y que el progreso va a continuar. Si bien la pandemia del coronavirus de 2020 ha supuesto un terrible contratiempo, y la crisis económica global subsiguiente será muy difícil de superar, seremos capaces de resolverlo. El capitalismo ha generado sin duda progresos materiales enormes. Sin embargo, no ha solucionado, sino que ha agravado, las necesidades básicas de tipo material, sociocultural y espiritual de gran parte de la humanidad. Y es que una concepción ingenua del progreso humano o una visión tecnocientífica demasiado simple no permite valorar adecuadamente el conjunto de la realidad del planeta ni de todos los seres vivos que en él habitan.
Ante un escenario tan difícil y complejo como peligroso, este libro quiere aportar algunas respuestas a temas tan cruciales para la salud y la equidad como la política y la desigualdad, la crisis ecológica y el sistema capitalista, el desempleo y la precarización laboral, la mercantilización sanitaria y la reciente pandemia del coronavirus. Y hace una apuesta decidida por la salud pública, entendida de una manera integral. El futuro de la vida y de la salud están en nuestras mentes y en nuestras manos. La elección es nuestra."

"Las reformas laborales representan una agresión sin precedentes históricos recientes a los derechos de millones de trabajadores y trabajadoras. Es un golpe de Estado en materia laboral, la “joya de la corona” de los gobiernos neoliberales que aspiran a reforzar el poder de los empresarios, debilitar convenios colectivos, facilitar despidos e incluso destruir el derecho laboral. Las reformas precarizan el empleo, aumentan la desigualdad, empeoran las condiciones laborales y dañan la salud y calidad de vida de los trabajadores y sus familias. Cambiar la situación actual no será sencillo ni rápido pero es imprescindible actuar y unir fuerzas, resistir frente a la actual situación y luchar por un cambio estructural profundo en el modelo productivo, en las condiciones de empleo y trabajo y en cómo reorganizar la vida social y laboral. No nos regalarán el tener un empleo justo ni un trabajo digno, habrá que luchar por ello. Nuestro trabajo, nuestra salud, nuestra vida, nuestra felicidad están en juego."

"When there are safety representatives (SRs) at the workplace higher levels of preventive action have been observed. However, no study has analyzed workers' health and safety results when workers (do not) know they have SRs. Based on data from the VII Spanish Working Conditions Survey (2011), this paper explores differences in the intensity of self-reported preventive action among workers reporting to have SRs at their workplaces, workers reporting not having them, and workers unaware of SRs' existence. The sample included employees aged 16–65 years working at firms with 6 workers or more (n = 5562). A multinomial logistic regression was undertaken to study the association between the reported existence of SRs and levels of preventive action (high, intermediate and non-existent), comparing workers unaware of SRs' existence to those reporting to have SRs and those reporting no SRs. Models were adjusted by socio-demographic and employment-related features. It was found that workers reporting SRs' existence were protected by greater preventive action, both at the intermediate (aOR = 2.87, 95% CI 2.39–3.44) and high level (aOR = 10.26, 95% CI 7.27–14.50), and that there were no statistically significant differences between workers reporting not to have SRs and those unaware of SRs. Our results draw attention to a group of workers who might have SRs without being aware of it and remain less protected by preventive action. These workers would benefit from interventions aimed at making SRs known and available to all workers."

"Employment precariousness is a social determinant that affects the health of workers, families, and communities. Its recent popularity has been spearheaded by three main developments: the surge in “flexible employment” and its associated erosion of workers' employment and working conditions since the mid-1970s; the growing interest in social determinants of health, including employment conditions; and the availability of new data and information systems. This article identifies the historical, economic, and political factors that link precarious employment to health and health equity; reviews concepts, models, instruments, and findings on precarious employment and health inequalities; summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of this literature; and highlights substantive and methodological challenges that need to be addressed. We identify two crucial future aims: to provide a compelling research program that expands our understanding of employment precariousness and to develop and evaluate policy programs that effectively put an end to its health-related impacts."

"This report provides an in-depth analysis of the quality of employment conditions and employment relations in the European employed workforce. Employment in the report is viewed as the contractual relationship between an employer and a worker, specifically how the rights and duties embedded into the relationship are translated into real rights. The analysis is mainly based on data from the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), conducted in 2010. Where appropriate, comparisons with earlier waves of the EWCS are made."

"Disponer de una atención sanitaria pública, universal y de calidad es un derecho ciu­da­­dano, independiente de la condición so­cial o lugar de residencia. La progresiva aplicación de políticas neoliberales, que desmantelan el Estado del bienestar y favorecen la priva­tización de la sanidad, daña nuestra sa­lud y aumenta la desigualdad. Como si fuera una mercancía más, la sanidad pública está "en venta": se cierran centros de atención prima­ria, urgencias y quirófa­nos, aumentan las listas de espera, se am­plia el repago... La ciu­­da­danía debe saber lo que nos jugamos: per­­der un derecho esen­cial conseguido tras lar­­gas luchas so­cia­les. El crecimiento de un movimiento popular, par­­ticipativo y valien­te, que de­fien­de y promue­ve la mejora de la sanidad pública es motivo de esperanza. Es­te libro puede ayudar a que la ciudadanía de­­fienda un derecho hoy seria­mente amenazado."