Healthy work among store employees

ISRCTN	ISRCTN15667066
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN15667066
ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT)	Nil known
Clinical Trials Information System (CTIS)	Nil known
Protocol serial number	Nil known
Sponsor	The National Research Center for the Working Environment
Funder	TrygFonden

Submission date: 11/08/2023
Registration date: 06/09/2023
Last edited: 14/01/2025

Recruitment status: No longer recruiting
Overall study status: Completed
Condition category: Other

Prospectively registered

Protocol

Statistical analysis plan

Results

Individual participant data

Record updated in last year

Plain English summary of protocol

Background and study aims
Working as an employee in a store is an occupation that can be physically demanding, in terms of receiving and stocking goods. Additionally, it can be demanding in terms of various standing activities such as restocking shelves, assisting customers, and more, but also quite sedentary at the cash register. Moreover, it can be mentally demanding in terms of customer interaction and time pressure. Consequently, store employees experience injuries and poor health, highlighting the need for interventions that promote their well-being and health in the workplace.
Many traditional health-promoting workplace interventions are based on initiatives that are often an add-on to the actual productive work. In contrast to these conventional health promotion approaches, this study adopts an organizational and holistic approach to workplace health promotion, aiming to integrate health promotion into the existing work tasks and productive work.
Therefore, the aim of this proof of concept study is to examine the potential and possibilities of redesigning and organizing store employees' work and work tasks in a way that can possibly be health-promoting.

Who can participate?
Store employees in Denmark

What does the study involve?:
The researchers will develop, test and evaluate the feasibility of conducting an organizational health-promoting workplace intervention, inspired by the Goldilocks Work Principle.
The study involves four phases:
1. Mapping of the employees’ workday and work task
2. Development of the intervention,
3. Implementation of intervention and
4. Evaluation of the intervention and project
In the first phase, the researchers aim to map and assess the store employees’ work and their work tasks. They plan to do observations, following the workers on their daily work routine. They plan to do semi-structured interviews with the employees about their work tasks and perceived demands and challenges. Then they will measure the participants' physical activity through objective measurements using an accelerometer (sensor) attached to their thigh and measure their physical activity during work (walking, standing, sitting or running). In the second phase (development) the researchers aim to identify potential areas of improvement and develop the intervention in collaboration with the workplace. The researchers plan to do one or two workshops with the employees, managers and OSH representatives, so that they become involved in the project and through a participatory approach, have them involved in developing the intervention. Third, in the intervention phase the researchers wish to test the feasibility of implementing the initiatives developed. Testing the intervention involves having the store employees perform their work with the implemented changes (intervention) that was designed during the third phase. Lastly, the researchers plan to evaluate the feasibility and acceptance of the intervention from the store employees and their manager(s)´ perspective.

What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?:
Participating store employees can gain better insight into their physical and psychosocial working conditions and beneficial health effects. There are no risks or side effects of participating.

Where is the study run from?:
National Research Center for the Working Environment (Denmark)

When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?:
March 2023 to June 2024

Who is funding the study?:
Trygfonden (Denmark)

Who is the main contact?
Charlotte Diana Nørregaard Rasmussen, cnr@nfa.dk

Contact information

Ms Kristine Hell
Public

Kresten Philipsens Vej 15
Aabenraa
6200
Denmark

ORCID ID	0009-0009-5030-1956
Phone	+45 (0)21157477
Email	Kristine.Hell@rsyd.dk

Ms Charlotte Diana Nørregaard Rasmussen
Scientific

Lersø Parkallé 105
Copenhagen
2100
Denmark

ORCID ID	0000-0002-1769-717X
Phone	+45 (0)40313769
Email	cnr@nfa.dk

Dr Marie Honoré Jacobsen
Principal investigator

Lersø Parkalle 105
Copenhagen
2100
Denmark

ORCID ID	0009-0007-8547-4772
Phone	+45 (0)21 49 83 64
Email	mjc@nfa.dk

Study information

Primary study design	Interventional
Study design	Eight weeks non-randomized quasi-experimental proof of concept study
Secondary study design	Non randomised study
Study type	Participant information sheet
Scientific title	Proof of concept study of reorganizing work among store employees to promote health – a Goldilocks work approach
Study objectives	It is feasible to organize work in a way that ensures a more balanced distribution of physical and psychosocial work demands among the store workers in order to enhance the workers' physical, social and mental health and well-being.
Ethics approval(s)	Ethics approval not required
Ethics approval additional information	Ethical approval was not required as the planned evaluation of the study did not fall under the definition of the laws defined in Committee Act § 2 and § 1, and could be initiated without approval from The Committees on Health Research Ethics for the Capital Region of Denmark (ref number: F-23031959)
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied	Physical and psychosocial work demands in stores
Intervention	In this non-randomized proof-of-concept study, there will be no control group, and all participants will receive the organizational intervention at their workplace. The intervention consists of measurements of physical activity, a workshop to develop the intervention together with the workplace, and the intervention itself, which will focus on the reorganization of work to improve physical and psychosocial work demands for store employees. The duration of the intervention will be approximately eight weeks and ends with follow-up measurements of acceptability, physical behaviors and psychosocial working conditions as well as self-reported measurements of musculoskeletal pain, stress, well-being, need for recovery and burnout.
Intervention type	Other
Primary outcome measure(s)	1. Feasibility will be measured with questions based on the validated instrument Feasibility of Intervention measures (FIM) through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with the participant at follow-up. 2. Participants’ acceptability of the intervention will be assessed using a validated questionnaire and semi-structured interviews of selected participants during follow-up. The questionnaire and the interview guide will be based on the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability (TFA), which includes a generic TFA-based questionnaire.
Key secondary outcome measure(s)	1. Work demands: Information about work tasks and organization of work are collected through observations made at the workplace done by a researcher, and from work schedules collected from the workplace, and lastly, through data about employees’ physical behavior (see specifics under physical behavior). These measurements will be collected at baseline and at follow-up approximately 8 weeks from baseline. 2. Physical behavior: Information about the participants’ physical activity at work will be assessed through observations, and measured by an accelerometer. A triaxle accelerometer (SENS Motion®, Copenhagen, Denmark) will be attached to the right thigh of the participants for 24 hours over five consecutive days. Participants will be asked to report their work hours, leisure time and sleep using an app (MOTUS, The National Research Center for the Working Environment, Copenhagen, Denmark). Measures of the participants’ physical activity include: the number of steps, light, moderate and high physical activity and sitting time. If possible, heavy lifting and arm elevation will be examined through interviews or questionnaire. 3. Psychosocial and physical factors and health: Influence at work will be measured in a questionnaire at baseline and follow-up with questions from the validated questionnaire, the Danish Psychosocial Questionnaire. Physical and emotional fatigue and stress will be measured in a questionnaire at baseline and follow-up with questions from the validated questionnaire, the Second Version of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire. Moreover, stress will also be measured through questions from the validated Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Moreover, participants will also be asked about their experience of influence and involvement in their work tasks and work demands in semi-structured interviews at baseline and follow-up. 4. Information about physical demands at work, pain frequency and pain limitation during work are collected through validated questions from Work Environment and Health in Denmark Study in a questionnaire at baseline and follow-up. 5. Physical exertion during work will be measured using the Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale in a questionnaire at baseline and follow-up. 6. Participants’ well-being will be measured using the 5-item World Health Organization scale in a questionnaire at baseline and follow-up. 7. Need for recovery will be measured through a short-form validated Danish NFR scale in a questionnaire at baseline and follow-up.
Completion date	30/06/2024

Eligibility

Participant type(s)	Employee
Age group	Adult
Lower age limit	18 Years
Upper age limit	67 Years
Sex	All
Target sample size at registration	26
Total final enrolment	23
Key inclusion criteria	Store employees
Key exclusion criteria	1. Pregnancy 2. Allergic to plasters 3. Fever
Date of first enrolment	07/09/2023
Date of final enrolment	01/12/2023

Locations

Countries of recruitment

Denmark

Study participating centre

Different stores in Eastern Denmark

2100
Denmark

Results and Publications

Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share	No
IPD sharing plan summary	Not expected to be made available
IPD sharing plan	The data that will be generated and analyzed based on the study are not expected to be made available due to protection of participants’ identity.

Study outputs

Output type	Details	Date created	Date added	Peer reviewed?	Patient-facing?
Participant information sheet	Participant information sheet	11/11/2025	11/11/2025	No	Yes

Editorial Notes

14/01/2025: Total final enrolment added.
20/12/2024: Contact details updated.
18/10/2024: The intention to publish date was updated from 01/10/2024 to 01/03/2025.
06/11/2023: The following changes were made to the study record:
1. The recruitment end date was changed from 01/11/2023 to 01/12/2023.
2. The overall study end date was changed from 01/03/2024 to 30/06/2024.
11/08/2023: Study's existence confirmed by the Danish Committee System on Health Research Ethics.