The health that workers want

Abstract

Employee health has significant social implications for Australia. Prevention strategies and health services for work-related injury and illness are managed by Occupational Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation systems. The extent of human suffering and the costs associated with work-related injury and illness are considerable and arguably these systems do not adequately address employee health. Non work-related injury and illness occurring during the employment period of life are contextually bound to work and are integral to the concept of employee health. This thesis seeks to understand the subjective experience of employee health from the workers' perspective. Because of workers' direct experience of their health problems their accounts are beneficial for improving workplace policies, procedures and practices. A case study approach with both quantitative and qualitative methods is used to access these experiences. The focus of the research is on a population belonging to an industry at risk of occupational stress, in order to prevent further burdens of ill health for the individual, workplace and community. The tertiary sector of the education industry in Australia provides the context for case study for this work.