How physically and emotionally healthy are the partners of fly-in, fly-out workers?

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2024-11-01 03:00

Australia; VIC; WA

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Partners of fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) workers are generally happier when their partner is home but are mostly making the same health choices for on and off weeks, according to Australian researchers. The team surveyed the partners of 44 FIFO workers - who fly to their workplace for several days at a time before having several days off at home - every day for a month to investigate how their partner's work roster impacted their physical and mental health. The researchers say the participants generally had a better mood when their partner was home than when they were at work, and if their overall workload increased while their partner was absent, so did their anxiety levels. The participants generally made similar health choices about sleep and diet regardless of where their partner was, the researchers say, but when their partner was home, they generally drank more alcohol. The researchers say, overall, receiving quality social support and support at work benefitted the participants' mental health over the month.