A Survey on the Knowledge and Attitude of Workers Concerning Occupational Health

근로자의 산업보건 지식과 태도에 관한 조사연구

This research was carried out on 1,017 production workers for four months from May to August, 1991, to search more effective management method of their health by grasping their knowledge and attitude on industrial health. The results of this study can be summarized as follows: 1. As for general characteristics, 74.2% were male and 25.8% were female among the 1,017 workers. The two largest age groups were 30~39, 38.7%. As for education level, graduation from high school was 58.6%, 61.2% were married, 35.9% owned their house, and workers who worked more than 1 year less than 5 years was 52.9%, workers who worked 8 hours a day was 46.7%, the largest group income level was 60~69 thousand won 21.2%, and the degree of satisfaction with work was ordinary, 45.6%. 2. The degree of recognition concerning occupational diseases was 92.5% at a very high rate. Causes of occupational diseases under the present work field were in order of noise, dust, heavy metal. The largest group of the counterplan for prevention was an improvement of working environment, 62.0%. 3. The major cause that threatens worker's health was poor working environment, 31.4%. As the best method for workers' health management, working environment management was pointed. 4. As for health examination result, the response that it is of use to health management was 53.8%. As for examination method and result, 42.7% responded that they are formal. The practice period was more than once every six months as the largest group, and the highest desire for improvement was that they wants an exact information of the result. 5. 49.3% of the respondents know about the measurement of working environment an the response that the measurement is necessary to improve working environment was 57.9%, and that the results from the measurement were reflected on improvement an management 57.5%. Appropriate period to take a measurement was more than once per six months, 40.2% and per three months, 29.1%. 6. As for safety and halth instruction, 34.5% were educated for both, 38.2% for only safety education and just 4.6% for only health education. 51.9% responded that they had never been educated out of work place. The period of its practice was more than once a month, 39.5% and every three months, 21.3%. 7. The importance of safety and health showed that the one is equal to the other, 59.8%, that the one is more important, 29.6%, and that other is more important, 7.6%. 67.7% said the necessity of a safety and health manager. 8. In spite of more or less health obstacle of work environment, 14.9% of the respondents wanted to overwork to gain an allowance for over-time work, 39.9% didn't, and 40.2% according to condition and state. 9. As the most important cause of industrial accident, 40.2% indicated unsafe behavior. As for the individual protective instrument, 66.1% of all the respondents said they have worn it to protect industrial diseases. 10. As for the degree of understanding of the contents in Industrial Safety and Health Law and Industrial Law of Accident Insurance, an affirmative response was respectively 49.3% and 50.8% and the sources of safety-health information were televisions and radios, 28.0%. Therefore, it is necessary that we do positive working environmental improvement, continuous management and health education's inforcement to increase their health and prevent occupational diseases.