No difference in self reported health among coalminers in two different shift schedules at Spitsbergen, Norway, a two years follow-up.

This study was performed among coal miners in the remote location Svea, Spitsbergen. The shift schedule used to be 7 d on and 7 d off. The aim of this study was to investigate possible changes in health after a voluntary implementation of a new shift schedule, with periods of 14 d on and 14 d off, for 74 percent of the workers in 2007. A questionnaire was distributed to all employees before and two times after the new shift schedule, comprising questions on type of work, shift schedule, pain, sleep, stress and coping. Ninety nine percent of the employees responded; 274 in 2006, 307 in 2007 and 312 in 2008. Work neither in the 14/14 shift nor 7/7 shift was related to any change in the health after these two years. The coping index for workers in the 14/14 shift improved.

[1]  Gregory D Roach,et al.  The effects of different roster schedules on sleep in miners. , 2010, Applied ergonomics.

[2]  B. Moen,et al.  Subjective and objective sleep and sleepiness among tunnel workers in an extreme and isolated environment: 10-h shifts, 21-day working period, at 78 degrees north. , 2010, Sleep medicine.

[3]  C. Shapiro,et al.  Subjective and Objective Evaluation of Sleep and Performance in Daytime Versus Nighttime Sleep in Extended-Hours Shift-Workers at an Underground Mine , 2004, Journal of occupational and environmental medicine.

[4]  S. Bendak.  12-h workdays: current knowledge and future directions , 2003 .

[5]  Giovanni Costa,et al.  Factors influencing health of workers and tolerance to shift work , 2003 .

[6]  Giovanni Costa,et al.  Shift work and occupational medicine: an overview. , 2003, Occupational medicine.

[7]  H. Eriksen,et al.  Prevalence of subjective health complaints (SHC) in Norway , 2002, Scandinavian journal of public health.

[8]  T Riise,et al.  Prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among aluminium workers. , 2000, Occupational medicine.

[9]  P. Totterdell,et al.  A process model of shiftwork and health. , 1999, Journal of occupational health psychology.

[10]  Torbjörn Akerstedt,et al.  The healthy-worker effect: A self-selection among Swedish shift workers , 1993 .

[11]  M. Midwinter,et al.  Adaptation of the melatonin rhythm in human subjects following nightshift work in Antarctica , 1991, Neuroscience Letters.

[12]  H. Eriksen,et al.  Still healthy after extended work hours? Ten hours shift, twenty-one days working period for tunnel workers. , 2010, Industrial Health.

[13]  A. Williamson,et al.  Epidemiological diagnosis of occupational fatigue in a fly-in fly-out operation of the mineral industry. , 2008, The Annals of occupational hygiene.

[14]  V. Hisdal.  Svalbard : nature and history , 1998 .