Kurt Wahlstedt

Work Organizational Changes As Tools to Improve Health: Example: Postal Work Kurt Wahlstedt

Postal work is performed in very different settings, and the works are e.g. drivers, letter carriers, postal sorters, and counter clerks. A finding that a small group of parcel sorters with a good psychosocial work situation had much lower health complaints than comparable workers with a worse psychosocial situation at work, indicated that it might be possible to improve mental and physical health among postal employees by improving work organization. Two changes in workplaces in Sweden Post were followed and evaluated. The theoretical framework for the evaluation was the demands-control-support (DCS) model by Karasek, Theorell, and Johnson. The main findings of the investigations were that there were significant associations between psychosocial work situation among postal workers and psychosomatic and musculoskeletal symptoms, and that it was possible to reduce symptoms and sick-leave, by changes of organization, and improvement of the psychosocial work situation.