Table 1 Demographic and work-related characteristics of study participants
Variable | Participants of this study | Korean Workers’ Compensation statistics (%)a | |
|---|---|---|---|
N | % | ||
Gender | |||
 Male | 178 | 88.1 | 79.7 |
 Female | 24 | 11.9 | 20.3 |
Age (years) | |||
 ≤ 39 | 47 | 23.3 | 28.8 |
 40–49 | 66 | 32.7 | 24.1 |
 50–59 | 72 | 35.6 | 33.1 |
 ≥ 60 | 17 | 8.4 | 14.1 |
Education | |||
 < High school | 32 | 15.8 | 22.5 |
 High school | 97 | 48.0 | 50.6 |
 ≥ College/university | 73 | 36.1 | 26.9 |
Occupational categories | |||
 Manufacturing | 92 | 45.5 | 37.9 |
 Wholesale/retail/accommodation/food | 34 | 16.8 | 10.8 |
 Construction | 53 | 26.2 | 20.7 |
 Others | 23 | 11.5 | 30.6 |
Job categories | |||
 Manager/professionals/clerks | 34 | 16.9 | 14.2 |
 Craft workers/Plant, machine operators/assemblers | 110 | 54.5 | 55.4 |
 Elementary workers | 44 | 21.8 | 18.7 |
 Others | 14 | 6.9 | 11.7 |
Employment type | |||
 Regular worker | 132 | 65.3 | 70.3 |
 Temporary worker | 25 | 12.4 | 10.1 |
 Day worker | 43 | 21.3 | 19.4 |
 Self-employed/employer | 2 | 1.0 | 0.2 |
Organization size | |||
 Small | 49 | 24.3 | 38.7 |
 Medium | 93 | 46.0 | 52.8 |
 Large | 57 | 28.2 | 8.5 |
 Don’t know | 3 | 1.5 |  |
Duration of sickness absence | |||
 ≤ 3 months | 22 | 10.9 | 36.8 |
 3-6 months | 64 | 31.7 | 33.7 |
 7–9 months | 48 | 23.8 | 18.8 |
 10–12 months | 17 | 8.4 | 3.9 |
 ≥ 13 months | 51 | 25.2 | 6.9 |
Hospital service use type | |||
  Inpatient | 59 | 29.2 |  |
  Outpatient | 143 | 70.8 |  |
Types of main injury | |||
 Sprain and strain | 13 | 6.4 |  |
 Peripheral nerve injury only | 5 | 2.5 |  |
 Rupture of cartilage or tendon | 48 | 23.8 |  |
 Fracture | 124 | 61.4 |  |
 Amputation | 10 | 5.0 |  |
 N/A | 2 | 1.0 |  |
Injured area of the body (more than one) | |||
 Spine | 91 | 45.0 |  |
 Upper extremities | 62 | 30.7 |  |
 Lower extremities | 96 | 47.5 |  |