Objective: Strategies and measures for fighting occupational stress in China are inadequate. This study aimed to determine the level of occupational stress in coal miners and to assess the associations between occupational stress and job burn-out, depression and hypertension. The results could provide clues for preventive measures and strategies to improve the psychological well-being of this population. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Xinjiang Coal Administration Bureau. Participants: Four coal mines were selected randomly (computer-generated random number-based selection process) from the 21 coal mines of Xinjiang, and all miners with >1 year of employment were screened for participation. Primary and secondary outcome measures: A general demographic questionnaire, the Self-rating Depression Scale, the Effort–Reward Imbalance (ERI) model and the Maslach Burn-out Inventory. Results: A total of 1400 questionnaires were collected, including 1334 (95.3%) valid questionnaires. This survey indicated that 1107 (83.0%) participants with an ERI score >1 (high occupational stress) and 227 (12.8%) had ERI ≤1. Severe depression was found in 21.7% of the participants. Job burn-out was positively correlated with occupational stress, which was, in turn, associated with depression. Multivariable linear regression analysis showed that depression (β=0.006, p=0.012), sex (β=0.358, p<0.001) and occupational stress (β=0.702, p<0.001) were independently associated with job burn-out. Working years (β=−0.086, p = 0.015) and job burn-out (β=0.022, p < 0.001) were directly associated with depression. Conclusion: This study highlights that occupational stress may affect job burn-out, depression symptoms and hypertension. A higher degree of occupational stress was associated with poorer mental status and hypertension.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the status of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and its influence on the working ability of oil workers, and to provide a theoretical basis for helping lessen the burden of MSDs and improve the man-machine environment of oil workers. The cluster sampling method was used to study 2000 workers who had been employed for more than 1 year in this field. We investigated the prevalence rate and the work ability index (WAI). A total of 1935 valid questionnaires were collected, a response rate of 96.75%. There were 1639 people who had suffered from MSDs in the past year, a prevalence rate of 84.7%. The damage detection rate in female oil workers was higher than in males, and the damage detection rate in workers aged 30 to 45 years was higher than that in the other two age groups. The detection rate in less highly-educated oil workers was higher than that in more highly-educated workers. The detection rate in divorced workers was higher than that in other groups. The detection rate in workers between the number of working years of 18 to 25 years was higher than in the other two groups. The detection rate in workers with a high professional title was significantly higher than that in lower-titled workers (p < 0.05). The results showed that the WAI scores of the subjects with MSDs were significantly lower than for subjects without MSDs (p < 0.05). In a logistic regression analysis, sex, number of working years and WAI index all had an impact on MSDs. We concluded that due to the demands of their role, the oil workers had serious MSDs that influenced their working ability.

This study is to investigate the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and the influencing factors among coal mine workers employed in on-site operations. The job burnout scale and MSD scale were implemented to investigate a random sample of 1,500 coal mine workers working in on-site operations in Xinjiang, China. In total, 1,325 valid questionnaires were collected, with a recovery rate of 88.33% (1,325/1,500). The rate of job burnout was 90%, of which 39.8% were categorized as mild burnout, 43.8% as moderate burnout, and 6.4% as severe burnout; the average job burnout score was . The annual prevalence of MSDs was 65.6%, with the highest annual prevalence in the waist (50.7%), followed by the neck, shoulder, and knee, and the lowest prevalence in the elbow (18.8%). Of the areas of the body affected by work-related MSDs, the highest proportion of requests for leave of absence was related to the waist, accounting for 25.7% of requests, while the lowest proportion (13.4%) was related to the wrist. In addition, the incidence of MSDs increased with the years of service. The lowest incidence of MSDs was associated with the two-shift and three-group working pattern. The prevalence of MSDs in the neck and waist was higher in women than in men. The prevalence of MSDs in various body parts increased with the years of service. Moreover, multiple logistic regression indicated that three shifts with four groups ( , 95% CI: 0.832-1.445), working more than 10 years ( , 95% CI: 2.369-5.748), working more than 20 years ( , 95% CI: 1.419-6.337), significant bending ( , 95% CI: 1.400-3.038), forward neck tilting ( , 95% CI: 1.071-2.281), maximum force operation within a short period of time ( , 95% CI: 1.164-2.547), repeated movement of upper arms or fingers ( , 95% CI: 1.034-2.161), slip or fall incidents ( , 95% CI: 1.039-1.216), work under conditions of cold or temperature variations ( , 95% CI: 1.342-2.720), mild burnout ( , 95% CI: 1.016-2.191), moderate burnout ( , 95% CI: 1.267-2.708), and severe burnout ( , 95% CI: 1.145-3.496) were...