SUSTAINABILITY OF WORKING LIFE IN AGING: EVIDENCE ON WORK CAPACITY AND QUALITY OF LIFE
Abstract
The aging of the workforce has increased the permanence of older workers in productive activities, imposing challenges to the sustainability of working life. This study aimed to systematize recent scientific evidence on work capacity and quality of life in older workers, through an integrative literature review. The search was carried out in the PubMed, CAPES, VHL and SciELO databases, including publications from the last five years. Field studies with workers aged 50 years or older who used the Work Ability Index (WAI) as an assessment instrument were included. After applying the eligibility criteria, five studies composed the corpus of analysis. The results indicate that work ability is influenced by psychosocial factors, working conditions, perceived health, sleep quality, and technostress. There was a predominance of observational designs and absence of Brazilian studies in the period analyzed. Only one study evaluated an applied intervention, evidencing a gap in scientific production regarding the empirical testing of strategies aimed at preserving work capacity in older workers. In addition, quality of life has been shown to be little explored as a central outcome. It is concluded that the sustainability of working life in aging depends on individual and organizational factors, and it is necessary to expand interventional research and national production that subsidize public policies and contextualized organizational strategies.
Author Biographies
Mestranda pelo Programa de Pós-graduação em Saúde Ambiental e Saúde do Trabalhador (PPGSAT), Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU), Uberlândia-MG, Brasil.
Professor Permanente do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Saúde Ambiental e Saúde do Trabalhador, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU), Uberlândia-MG, Brasil.
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