Work-family balance in the construction industry: why gender analysis matters to develop sustainable interventions.

Work-family balance (WFB) in the construction sector has rarely been studied. Hardship, atypical schedules and seasonal work create challenging conditions for parents in this male-dominated industry. Semi-structured interviews with workers (14 men, 6 women) and a survey of 789 on-site workers (85% men, 15% women) were conducted as part of a wider participatory action-research project involving governmental actors. Triangulation of the interview and survey data clarified the influence of quantitative and qualitative workload and of managerial support on work-family conflict. Results also show that male and female workers have differentiated experiences of WF issues and, consequently, develop different WF strategies while pursuing increased flexibility. The stereotyped conception of WF encourages social norms that have various impacts on mothers and fathers working in the industry. Recommendations for a cultural shift are proposed for employers in this industry, marked by a labour shortage and low retention of female workers.Practitioner summary: This paper provides a gendered analysis of work-family issues among on-site workers in the construction industry. It aims to inform ergonomists and occupational health researchers about the potential of inflexible work designs to convey stereotypes that can impact the sustainability and equity of workplace interventions.

Validity of the Aboriginal children's health and well-being measure: Aaniish Naa Gegii?

BACKGROUND: Aboriginal children experience challenges to their health and well-being, yet also have unique strengths. It has been difficult to accurately assess their health outcomes due to the lack of culturally relevant measures. The Aboriginal Children's Health and Well-Being Measure (ACHWM) was developed to address this gap. This paper describes the validity of the new measure. METHODS: We recruited First Nations children from one First Nation reserve in Canada. Participants were asked to complete the ACHWM independently using a computer tablet. Participants also completed the PedsQL. The ACHWM total score and 4 Quadrant scores were expected to have a moderate correlation of between 0.4 and 0.6 with the parallel PedsQL total score, domains (scale scores), and summary scores. RESULTS: Paired ACHWM and PedsQL scores were available for 48 participants. They had a mean age of 14.6 (range of 7 to 19) years and 60.4 % were girls. The Pearson's correlation between the total ACHWM score and a total PedsQL aggregate score was 0.52 (p = 0.0001). The correlations with the Physical Health Summary Scores and the Psychosocial Health Summary Scores were slightly lower range (r = 0.35 p = 0.016; and r = 0.51 p = 0.0002 respectively) and approached the expected range. The ACHWM Quadrant scores were moderately correlated with the parallel PedsQL domains ranging from r = 0.45 to r = 0.64 (p ≤ 0.001). The Spiritual Quadrant of the ACHWM did not have a parallel domain in the PedsQL. CONCLUSIONS: These results establish the validity of the ACHWM. The children gave this measure an Ojibway name, Aaniish Naa Gegii, meaning "how are you?". This measure is now ready for implementation, and will contribute to a better understanding of the health of Aboriginal children.