Career Development: Study Finds Work-Life Balance Has Significant Effect on On-The-Job Injury
A University of Georgia study conducted by Dave DeJoy and Todd Smith indicates that a worker’s perception of safety in the workplace and work-life balance have significant effects on on-the-job injury.
“Organizations who blame individuals for injuries do not create a positive safety climate.” ~ Dave DeJoy
According to an article in UGA Today, (“Perception, Work-Life Balance Key Factors in Workplace Safety, Says UGA Study,” April Reese Sorrow), an effectively run company with minimal constraints on worker performance can decrease injuries by 38 percent; and a worker’s perception of positive safety environment at the workplace can decrease injuries by 32 percent. However, when work interfers with family life, the risk for workplace injury increases by 37 percent.
The study is one of the first to examine U.S. safety climate perceptions among a diverse sample of occupations and worker groups and to highlight the factors linked to injury. The study appeared in the Journal of Safety Research, Volume 43, Issue 1, February 2012, Pages 67-74.
