The relation between low employment quality, sickness absence and mental health: a register-based cohort study of the total working population in Sweden

BACKGROUND: The labour market is changing due to technological advances, weakening of trade unions and the increasing competitiveness in global markets.

This has led to the emergence of atypical and precarious employment arrangements characterised by job insecurity, income inadequacy and lack of regulatory support, which may have a detrimental effect on health.

At the same time, the prevalence of mental disorders across the European Union has become one of the leading causes of sickness absence.

Mental disorders have a long-lasting effect on the duration and recurrence of sickness absence, which is a problem to individuals, families, employers and society due to the sickness benefits costs, medical expenses and personal suffering.

However, as noted by the ILO and several Swedish actors, workers in non-standard and precarious employment arrangement may not be covered by the social security systems, such as the sickness absence insurance.All these pose research challenges concerning the relationship between the cumulative effect of employment arrangements and sickness absence due to mental disorders.AIMS: The overall purpose of this postdoc project is to:- Deepen de understanding of how employment trajectories impact subsequent sickness absence due to mental disorders.- To analyse pathways of premature exit from the labour market among workers in low- and high-quality employment trajectories.METHODS.

We will use an established register-based cohort (SWIP) to analyze the relationship between employment arrangements and sickness absence longitudinally. We will use Repeated measures latent class analysis (RMLCA) on a total population cohort in Sweden 2005-2017. The project builds on previous projects and has high feasibility as data and ethics are already in place.

The results will contribute to the understanding of how health and access to social security systems affect different groups on the labour market.