Sickness Absence in Gender-Equal Companies
Author Information
Author(s): Sörlin Ann, Öhman Ann, Lindholm Lars
Primary Institution: Umeå University
Hypothesis
Does increased gender equality reduce the numbers of days on sickness benefit at company level?
Conclusion
Employees at gender-equal companies had more days on sickness benefit, but the differences between men and women were smaller in these companies.
Supporting Evidence
- In gender-equal companies, the risk for days on sickness benefit was 1.7 times higher than in gender-unequal companies.
- The differences in sickness absence were greater for men than for women in gender-equal companies.
- 22% of the companies studied were ranked as gender equal.
Takeaway
In companies where men and women are treated equally, people take more sick days, but men and women take sick days more similarly than in companies that are not equal.
Methodology
The study used the Organizational Gender Gap Index to measure gender equality and analyzed sickness benefit data from public registers.
Potential Biases
The reliance on public registers may introduce biases related to data availability and accuracy.
Limitations
The study only used data from 2004 and may not capture all relevant factors affecting sickness absence.
Participant Demographics
The study included employees from the Computer and Grocery production sectors, with a total of 53,204 participants.
Statistical Information
P-Value
1.7
Confidence Interval
95% CI 1.6-1.8
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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