Overwork association with presenteeism – Results from a national survey on working conditions in Latvia

Introduction: Underlying factors that affect going to work despite illness, resulting in presenteeism, differ. Presenteeism is influenced by both - work-related factors and personal factors. The study aimed to investigate the association between individual overwork (working for more than one employer and working overtime) and sickness presenteeism.
Material and Methods: The study used cross-sectional survey data representative of the working population of Latvia and pooled from four periodic surveys - Work conditions and risks in Latvia (2006 - 2018). The study sample (n=6368) consisted of employees between 16 and 80 years old (average 42.9 +/- 12.6) - 47.1% males and 52.9% females. The association between overtime work and work for several employers and sickness presenteeism was analyzed by using multinomial logistic regression and calculated as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), with adjustment for gender, age, education, and survey year.
Results: The odds of sickness presenteeism were higher among employees working for more than one employer (OR=1.50, CI 1.13-1.99, p <0.01) and working overtime (OR=2.12, CI 1.76-2.54, <0.001). The highest odds were observed among employees working overtime frequently (OR=3.53, CI 2.86-4.35, p <0.001) and sometimes (OR=1.78, CI 1.48-2.13, p<0.001).
Conclusions: Our findings suggest that employees working too much have higher odds for sickness presenteeism, however, further analysis is needed to identify mediating factors explaining the underlying mechanisms for the association between presenteeism and overwork.