Sex Composition of the Workplace and Mortality Risk

Kieron Barclay, Stockholm University

This study uses Swedish registry data from 1995 to 2007 to examine whether the proportion of males in administrative workplaces in the Swedish public service affects all-cause mortality risks amongst males and females of working age. Results from survival models show that for males, a 1% increase in the proportion of males was associated with a 1.1% increase in mortality risk (HR 1.011, 95% CI 1.005-1.017, P<0.000), but no association was found for females (HR 1.005, 95% CI 0.998-1.013, P=0.180). Adjustments were made for age, family status, education, occupational status, occupational segregation by gender, the total number of individuals in the workplace, level of government, region, period, and variables reflecting the workplace structure by age, age by sex, occupation, and education. These results may be related to an increased exposure to risky health behaviours, sickness presenteeism, and an increase in the levels of emotional stressors in the workplace.