A longitudinal study on the effects of health policy in organizations on job satisfaction, burnout, and sickness absence.

Abstract

The present study examines the effects of health policy in organizations as perceived by employees on their job satisfaction, burnout, and sickness absence. The data were collected with Internet questionnaires in a longitudinal three-wave design among a heterogeneous sample of 1004 employees. The study shows that a stronger focus on health in the organization enhanced job satisfaction, reduced burnout, and reduced sickness absence a year later, after controlling for these variables in previous measurements. Reversed effects of these work outcomes on the perceived health policy were not found. A strong focus on health in the organization improves psychological health and health behavior of employees. Introduction of a comprehensive health policy may be beneficial for both organizations and their employees.