https://doi.org/10.33573/ujoh2018.02.003
State Institution "Kundiiev Institute of Occupational Health of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine", Kyiv
Introduction. The task of the state's social policy is to create safe working conditions and well-being for the working people. The basis for realization of these tasks is approaches and principles of a number of international and domestic normative legal acts (Conventions, Recommendations, Laws, Orders, etc.), which regulate mechanisms of cooperation between governments, employers and workers for creation of proper working conditions and promotion of workers’ health. The formation of the labor potential depends on socio-economic, demographic, environmental factors, lifestyle, etc.
The aim of the study is to assess medical and social determinants of the labor potential formation of Ukraine in the period of socio-economic and political reforms in the country and to identify ways and means to solving problems.
Materials and methods of research. An estimation of the labor potential was made according to the data of the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine, the Center for Medical Statistics of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, materials of the Institute of Demography of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, personal long-term observations on the state of occupational morbidity in Ukraine. On the whole, all the basic data provided in the "Cards on Recording Occupational Diseases (Occupational poisonings)" were collected and processed within 2007–2017. Also, an analysis of scientific publications using the WHO, ILO, and PubMed electronic resources and databases was used. The study of the population employment in the labor process, demographic indicators, general and occupational morbidity of the able-to-work age was conducted.
Results. The regularities of the labor potential formation in Ukraine have been revealed, depending on the legislative base on problems of occupational health, employment of the population, medical and demographic characteristics, and the state of medical care of working people. The ways of solving problems have been determined.
Conclusion. The able-to-work population is the primary basis in formation of the labor potential. The population density during the years of the country’s independence has decreased by almost 10,0 million people (18,0 %). In the age structure of the population the individuals younger than 14 years makes about 14,0 %, showing the reduction in the labor potential reserve in the future. The dynamics of the employed population demonstrated the decrease by 35,0 % since 1995, when it made 23,72 million people and in 2017 – 15,44 mln. Such a decrease is due to the "roll-out" of certain types of production, closure of enterprises, "displacement" of the labor potential into the shadow economy, as well as to the work abroad, to a number of unemployed, unproductive sphere etc. There is a tendency to transfer from large enterprises to small and middle ones. Out of 1 970 000 enterprises by types of economic activity, the share of large, middle and small of them is 0,6 %, 5,7 % and 93,7 % respectively, which makes it difficult to control work conditions. Ukraine takes the second place in the world after the South African Republic and the highest in Europe, and, also, the country ranks first in the world according to levels of natural population decline (-6,3 ‰). There is a difference in mortality of the able-to-work population of 3,66 times between males and females. There was a significant gap in levels of male (65,2) and female (75,5) average life expectancy; in 2017 it made 10,3. Every year, because of the premature death of men, the country loses millions of years of the potential life, and accordingly, receives an inadequate national product. Among the working-age population, the prevalence of diseases over the past 15 years has increased by 11,4 %. In the structure – the first place belongs to diseases of the circulatory system, the second – respiratory organs, the third – digestion, the fourth – the genitourinary system and connective tissue. The presence of somatic diseases (1357,1 cases per 1000 workers) results in serious consequences to the working capacity and life of an individual. Occupational incidence rates over the last 10 years vary depending on changes in the social acceptability of a patient to registration. In this - the first place belongs to diseases of dust etiology, the second – the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue, the third – vibration diseases, most often – among those working in the mining industry. For various reasons, there is a fail in registration of occupational diseases in recent years, and a significant part of it has been transferred to general morbidity. Even under such underreported cases of occupational diseases, the society loses about 1,14 % of GDP each year in order to eliminate their consequences.
Key words: morbidity, mortality, medical care, occupational diseases, able-to-work age, prevention
ORCID ID of the author:
Nagorn A.M. (ORCID ID 0000-0003-3311-7523)