Balancing work and family after childbirth: a longitudinal analysis.

BACKGROUND: in the United States, women with young children have dramatically increased their participation in the workforce, resulting in greater potential conflict between work and family roles. However, few studies have examined postpartum work-family conflict. This study examined associations between work-family conflict and women's health after childbirth. METHODS: employed women, 18 years of age and older, were recruited while hospitalized for childbirth and followed for 18 months (n = 541; 66% response rate). Health outcomes were measured using the Short Form 12, version 2. Longitudinal fixed-effects models estimated the associations between work-family conflict (modeled as job and home spillover) and health. RESULTS: women who reported high levels of job spillover to home had mental health scores slightly, but significantly, worse than women who reported low levels of spillover (ß = -1.26; SE = 0.47). Women with medium and high levels of home spillover to job also reported worse mental health (ß = -0.81, SE = 0.30; and ß = -1.52, SE = 0.78) relative to those with low spillover. Women who reported medium (versus low) levels of home spillover reported slightly improved physical health (ß = 0.64, SE = 0.30). There was no significant association between job spillover and physical health. CONCLUSION: this study focused exclusively on employed postpartum women. Results illustrate that job and home spillover are associated with maternal mental and physical health. Findings also revealed that flexible work arrangements were associated with poorer postpartum mental health scores, which may reflect unintended consequences, such as increasing the amount of work brought home.

Flexible work arrangements and work-family conflict after childbirth.

BACKGROUND: Previous research has revealed that work-family conflict negatively influences women's health following childbirth. AIM: To examine if flexible work arrangements were associated with work-family conflict among women, 1 year after childbirth. METHODS: Employed women, aged >or=18, were recruited while hospitalized for childbirth. Flexible work arrangements were measured at 6 months and work-family conflict was measured at 12 months. General linear models estimated the association between flexible work arrangements and work-family conflict. RESULTS: Of 1157 eligible participants, 522 were included in this analysis giving a 45% response rate. Compared to women who reported that taking time off was very hard, those who reported it was not too hard (beta = -0.80, SE = 0.36, P < 0.05) and not at all hard (beta = -1.08, SE = 0.35, P < 0.01) had lower average job spillover scores. There was no association between taking time off and home spillover. The ability to change hours was associated with greater home spillover (beta = 0.46, SE = 0.18, P < 0.05) but not with job spillover. The ability to take work home was associated with increased home spillover (beta = 0.35, SE = 0.14, P < 0.05) but not with job spillover. CONCLUSIONS: The ability to change work hours and the ability to take work home were associated with increased home spillover to work. The ability to take time off was associated with decreased job spillover to home. Additional research is needed to examine the intentional and unintentional consequences of flexible work arrangements.

Giving birth and returning to work: the impact of work-family conflict on women's health after childbirth.

PURPOSE: Since 1970, women of childbearing age have increasingly participated in the workforce. However, literature on work-family conflict has not specifically addressed the health of postpartum women. This study examined the relationship between work-family conflict and mental and physical health of employed mothers 11 weeks after childbirth. METHODS: Employed women, 18 years and older, were recruited while in the hospital for childbirth (N = 817; 71% response rate). Mental and physical health at 11 weeks postpartum was measured using SF-12 version 2. General linear models estimated the associations between the independent variables and health. A priori causal models and directed acyclic graphs guided selection of confounding variables. RESULTS: Analyses revealed that high levels of work interference with family were associated with significantly lower mental health scores. Medium and high levels of family interference with work revealed a dose-response relationship resulting in significantly worse mental health scores. Coworker support was strongly and positively associated with better physical health. CONCLUSIONS: Work-family conflict was negatively associated with mental health but not significantly associated with physical health. Availability of social support may relieve the burden women can experience when balancing work roles and family obligations.

Self-reported medical conditions in perfluorooctanesulfonyl fluoride manufacturing workers.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether some cancers, other conditions, and pregnancy outcomes were related to occupational perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) exposure. METHODS: We surveyed current and former employees of a perfluorooctanesulfonyl fluoride production facility, using a self-administered questionnaire to ascertain several cancers and health conditions. Female cohort members also completed a brief pregnancy history. We requested medical records to validate reported melanoma, breast, prostate, and colon cancers. PFOS exposure was estimated based on a job exposure matrix up to the year of the diagnosis of the condition. RESULTS: Of the 1,895 eligible participants, 1,400 questionnaires were returned. No association was observed between working in a PFOS-exposed job and the risk of any of the surveyed conditions. CONCLUSION: We observed no association between working in a PFOS-exposed job and several cancers, common health conditions, and birth weight.