Analysis of Emerging Occupational Health Issues in Transport Industry

This report delves into the emerging occupational health issue of obesity within the transport industry. It begins by outlining the significance of the issue, highlighting the prevalence of obesity among transport workers and its associated health risks, such as cardiac issues and fatigue. The report then explores how obesity manifests in the industry, emphasizing the role of physical inactivity and sedentary work. It examines the legislative requirements related to workplace health and safety, including the Australian government's efforts to prevent obesity. Furthermore, the report analyzes standard industry practices aimed at minimizing obesity, such as incentives, preventive screenings, and weight management seminars. Finally, it offers recommendations for combating obesity, including promoting healthy diets, encouraging physical activity, and providing counseling services. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of addressing obesity to improve employee health and productivity within the transport industry.

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Emerging issues in healthcare
Institution
Name

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Executive summary
There are a range of emerging issues in all workplaces and transport industry is no exception.
This is due to the fact that obesity is very rampant among the employees in this industry. Lack of
physical activity among the employees is the major contribution towards this emerging issue.
Although measures have been taken to help prevent and reduce obesity within the transport
industry, there are certain strategies that have not been implemented thus its persistence.

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Table of Contents
Executive summary 1
Table of contents 2
Introduction 3
Background information 4
Findings 5
Recommendations 6
Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………………………7

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Emerging Occupational Health Issues in the transport Industry
Lifestyle related endless afflictions pose health burden to individuals and the society at
large, with correspondingly negative effects to the transport industry. In the transport industry,
obesity is particularly a very big issue in the Australasian road and rail transport systems as it
leads to cardiac and fatigue related safety risks (Naweed, Chapman, Allan & Trigg, 2017).
Although this issue has been recognized and national standards have been introduced, there are
few understanding and approaches used to manage the health for surface transport workers.
Although information technology industry has highly influenced the modern society and
lifestyles, it has led to an increase in sedentary work or even prolonged standing and sitting hours
which has caused an increase in physical inactivity hence obesity. According to Robroek et al.
(2013), obese people engage in less than a minute vigorous activity per day on average while
employees in the transport industry sits nearly the entire day. This report therefore aims at
examining obesity as an emerging occupational issue in transport industry by highlighting how it
manifests, the legislative requirements related to obesity as well as the standard practice related
to the minimization of obesity. Furthermore, this report also offers recommendations on how to
help prevent obesity within the information technology industry.
How the health risk manifests itself at the transport industry and how it may cause harm
Obesity is as a result of energy imbalance in the body. The intake of too many calories
while burning few calories is a common trend among the employees in the transport industry.
Although body size, genes and age influence the number of calories that people burn each day,
the most variable factor which is easily modified is the amount of activity people indulge in
every day. According to King and Jacobson (2017), most employees in the transport industries
do not engage in physical activities since an increase in their productivity demands for more time

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spent in a fixed body posture. This inactivity means that these employees do not use the energy
provide by the food they consume making the extra kilojoules to be stored as fats instead.
Additionally, most Australians expend several hundred fewer calories each day as compared
with the ones they burned in the 1960s as per the study conducted by Weikel (2014). This is
trend is particularly common among truck and train drivers as they spend less hours engaging in
physical activity. This in turn makes these employees to gain weight thereby causing imbalance
in their bodies. The body fat mass imbalance risks obesity among the employees in this industry.
Chapman and Naweed (2015) argue that obesity causes cardiac and fatigue related risks among
truck drivers and rail transporter thereby putting the life of passengers at risk. Additionally,
obesity can cause adverse health effects like back pain, high blood pressure, cardiovascular
diseases as well as diabetes. According to Iii et al. (2108), inactivity among these employees may
also lead to musculoskeletal disorders which may cause disabilities.
Legislative requirements relating to obesity
The Australian government has taken an active role in helping prevent obesity in
workplaces. This is because the government has an obligation to enact laws which put the health
of the citizens as a first priority. In helping to prevent obesity at work places, the government ha
put in place policies, laws and regulations to help drive the environmental and social changes
which will finally have a sustainable impact on the prevention of obesity among workers. The
legislation requires the disclosure of food kilojoules and fast food menu so that people may know
the number of calories they are consuming. According to the Work Health and Safety Act
(2011), Act 70 requires that a person conducting business should provide any resources, facilities
and assistance to a health and safety representative for the work group that are reasonably
necessary or prescribed by the regulations to enable the representative to exercise his or her

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powers or perform his or her functions under this Act, and allow a person assisting a health and
safety representative for the work group to have access to the workplace if that is necessary to
enable the assistance to be provided. Additionally, the act 70 (2) requires that a person
conducting business must allow a health and safety representative to spend such time as is
reasonably necessary to exercise his or her powers and perform his or her functions under this
Act.
Standard industry practice relating to the elimination or minimisation of the health hazard
and its effectiveness.
The obesity epidemic has been costing employers in the transport industry money
through its adverse effects on the workers’’ health and safety as well as its impact on the
healthcare costs, absenteeism and productivity. Since the cost of obesity among the workers is
immense and the cost of maintenance falls on employers, the industry has enacted laws that help
eliminate or minimize obesity and its effects. One of the standard industry practices in the
transport industry is introducing incentives. The industry encourages employees to provide
incentives to the employees like extra time off so as to reward employees who demonstrate
improved score of body mass index. This is due to the fact that in most cases, employees in the
transport industry work for long hours and it may be hard to find extra time to engage in physical
activities. According to Solovieva, Lallukka, Virtanen and Viikari-Juntura (2013), long working
hours and working overtime has a positive association with body mass index. Therefore, the
industry requires that employees be given extra time to engage in physical activities and
incentives be provided to those showing commitment. The standard industry practices also
emphasize on preventive screenings so as to take earlier actions. This is because biometric
screenings are capable of providing early warning about chronic conditions thereby enabling

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employees to have a clear understanding of their health risks. Additionally, it will help the
employees learn the steps they can take so as to prevent the escalation of their condition. Brown,
Moodie, Herrera, Veerman, & Carter (2017), argue that the industry also encourages the
organization of weight management seminars so as to educate the employees on the importance
of physical activities as well as labeling portions of their food thereby making healthy choices.
The industry also encourages peer mentoring so as to make the employees feel accompanied at
their place of work as well as learn from each other. This will enhance the employees’ efforts in
maintain healthy lifestyles.
Recommendation
To effectively combat obesity in the transport industry, the occupational health and
human resource can help employees make better informed choices as well as swiftly adopt the
healthy routines. This can be achieved by providing opportunity for the employees to eat a
healthy diet by actively and continuously promoting healthy choices in what is offered in the
industry’s cafeteria as well as all the events that may involve catering services. According to N
Naweed, Chapman, & Trigg, (2018), the transport industry should aim at making the healthier
choices more normal and accessible by making the food cheaper and affordable. This will reduce
the intake of fats among the employees hence productivity. The transport industry should also
think creatively about how and when the employees get to take apart in physical activities during
their working days by encouraging an active travel policy, as well as collaborating with local
leisure and sports facilities and offering membership subsidized rates to the employees who are
actively taking part. Moreover, the transport industry should also offer free fitness gadgets as this
will give them the opportunity to measure their physical activity participation. Brown, Moodie,
Herrera, Veerman and Carter (2017) argue that providing free training gadgets will offer an

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element of fun as the employees will engage in challenges that focus on overweight activities
and behaviors. The transport industry should also offer physical counselling to the employees so
that they may be able to implement solutions to their health problems as well as develop more
effective ways of coping up.
Conclusion
In conclusion, obesity is an emerging issue within the transport industry and the measures
to help deal with it should be implemented. Obesity among the employees in the transport
industry is mostly as a result of lack of time for physical activities as most of the time the
employees engage in sedentary activities. Obesity in the transport industry does not only affect
the health of the employees but also their productivity as they are likely to suffer from fatigue
due to accumulation of fats in their bodies. The legislative measures that have been taken to help
prevent obesity at the transport industry include the requirement that employers must allow
health and safety representatives to execute their duties by providing the necessary resources
without interference. The standard measures that have been implemented by the transport
industry on the other hand include peer mentoring, provision of incentives, organizing weight
management seminars, free time for physical activities as well as biometric screenings to help
early prevention. However, to help reduce the cost of maintaining obesity among the employees,
the transport industry should also offer physical counselling, encouraging healthier food choices,
as well as offer subsidized membership rates.

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