New JEMs

Within EPHOR the following new JEMs have been developed:

• The COVID-19-JEM assesses the risk at population level using eight dimensions related to SARS-COV-2 infections at work and will improve our ability to investigate work-related risk factors in epidemiological studies. The dimensions of the COVID-19-JEM could also be valuable for other future communicable diseases in the workplace. Oude Hengel, K. M., Burdorf, A., Pronk, A., Schlünssen, V., Stokholm, Z. A., Kolstad, H. A., van Veldhoven, K., Basinas, I., van Tongeren, M., & Peters, S. (2022). Exposure to a SARS-CoV-2 infection at work: Development of an international job exposure matrix (COVID-19-JEM). Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health, 48(1), 61–70.
• This developed infectious agents JEM assesses the risk at population level using five factors. Following validation, this JEM could serve as a valuable tool in future studies investigating the role of work in the occurrence of a respiratory disease. Karen M Oude Hengel, Susan Peters, Zara A Stokholm, Alex Burdorf, Anjoeka Pronk, Henrik A Kolstad, Martie van Tongeren, Ioannis Basinas, Vivi Schlünssen. Capturing occupational risk of airborne disease: An international job-exposure matrix based on five exposure factors. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2025 May 22:4235. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.4235
• A general population quantitative JEM for occupational solar UVR exposure including personal measurements for investigation of exposure-response relations in epidemiological studies of health effects potentially associated with occupational UVR exposure. Else T.Würtz, Kirsten Pugdahl, Morten Fenger-Grøn, Ina A. Berglind , Mark P.C. Cherrie , Anna Dahlman-Höglund, Kasper Grandahl, Jelena Macan, Alberto Modenese, Hilde Notø, Svetlana Solovieva, Kurt Straif, Marc Wittlich, Sven Connemann, Timo Heepenstrick, Peter A. Philipsen, Stephan Westerhausen, Calvin B. Ge, Johnni Hansen , Cheryl E. Peters, Ingrid Sivesind Mehlum, Vivi Schlünssen, and Henrik A. Kolstad. A quantitative solar ultraviolet radiation job exposure matrix for Europe. Annals of Work Exposures and Health 2025.
• Incorporating job-, region-, and year-specific factors, the heat JEM provides a harmonized tool for studying occupational heat stress. Its transparent framework allows for updates with new data and extensions to other years and regions. Tosca de Crom et al. Exposure to heat at work: development of a quantitative European job exposure matrix (Heat-JEM). Accepted in Scandinavian Journal of Work Enviromental Health, July 2025.