Full Citation
Title: Sick and Tired: A Quantitative Analysis of Paid Sick Leave Access and Psychological Distress by Race and Gender
Citation Type: Journal Article
Publication Year: 2024
ISBN:
ISSN: 2666-5603
DOI: 10.1016/J.SSMMH.2024.100372
NSFID:
PMCID:
PMID:
Abstract: With no policy at the federal level, U.S. employers, counties, cities, and states have established a patchwork of paid sick leave (hereafter, PSL) policies that regularly force many workers in the United States to choose between their health and wages. Employees without PSL benefits are often penalized—for example, they may be forced to take unpaid days off from work or may even be fired—when they miss work to seek medical care or look after an ill loved one (National Partnership for Women and Families and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People [NAACP], 2017). These penalties can heighten workers’ feelings of job insecurity and negatively impact workers’ mental health and stress levels. Prior research demonstrates mental health's integral role in shaping our overall well-being. Poor mental health is associated with a host of adverse outcomes, including increased physical illness, lower probability of full-time employment, and reduced quality of life (Doherty and Gaughran, 2014; Doran and Kinchin, 2017). Although many researchers have considered the relationship between access to PSL benefits, physical health outcomes (Collins et al., 2020; DeRigne et al., 2016), and access to health services (DeRigne et al., 2017), fewer studies have examined PSL's relationship to mental health (Asfaw, 2023, DeRigne et al., 2019; Stoddard-Dare et al., 2018). Even fewer studies have used an intersectional racial capitalism lens to examine whether this relationship is conditional on race and gender (Alang et al., 2023). Existing evidence highlights racialized and gendered disparities in access to PSL (Harknett and Schneider, 2022; Williamson, 2023a) and mental well-being (Astbury, 2001; Williams and Mohammed, 2013). Understanding the roles that race, gender, and PSL play in mental health may provide critical insights into strategies for addressing disparities in the American workforce. Our research addresses the following questions: Is there a relationship between access to PSL benefits and psychological distress? If so, does this relationship vary by race and gender? Our study uses racial capitalism and intersectionality as conceptual lenses for examining these issues. Investigating how access to PSL benefits may be differentially related to mental health across genders, races, and ethnicities is paramount to understanding PSL’s impact on our diverse workforce.
Url: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266656032400077X
User Submitted?: No
Authors: Swanson-Varner, Resha T.; Nadon, Melanie
Periodical (Full): SSM - Mental Health
Issue:
Volume: 6
Pages: 1-9
Data Collections: IPUMS Health Surveys - NHIS
Topics: Health, Labor Force and Occupational Structure, Population Health and Health Systems
Countries: