Table 1 Descriptive statistics.
| Variable | All | Never smoker | Current smoker | Former smoker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean (SD)* | Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | |
| Dependent variable | ||||
| Annual days of sick leave | 25.22 (60.72) | 19.93 (52.41) | 34.07 (70.43) | 24.48 (61.28) |
| Key independent variables | ||||
| Socioeconomic and demographic | ||||
| Age, years | 38.92 (12.33) | 37.22 (13.14) | 39.22 (11.62) | 41.61 (11.07) |
| Female | 0.51 (0.50) | 0.53 (0.50) | 0.54 (0.50) | 0.44 (0.50) |
| Above upper secondary school education | 0.26 (0.44) | 0.31 (0.46) | 0.18 (0.38) | 0.29 (0.45) |
| Work characteristics | ||||
| Loud noise | 0.37 (0.48) | 0.36 (0.48) | 0.39 (0.49) | 0.38 (0.48) |
| Stress | 0.63 (0.48) | 0.62 (0.49) | 0.64 (0.48) | 0.64 (0.48) |
| Repetitive movements | 0.38 (0.48) | 0.35 (0.48) | 0.44 (0.50) | 0.35 (0.48) |
| Bad ergonomic positions | 0.42 (0.49) | 0.39 (0.49) | 0.47 (0.50) | 0.41 (0.49) |
| Heavy lifts | 0.42 (0.49) | 0.41 (0.49) | 0.47 (0.50) | 0.40 (0.49) |
| Lifestyle variables | ||||
| Smoker | 0.29 (0.45) | na | na | na |
| Former smoker | 0.26 (0.44) | na | na | na |
| Health | ||||
| Bad self‐reported health | 0.02 (0.15) | 0.01 (0.12) | 0.03 (0.18) | 0.03 (0.16) |
| Activity limitation | 0.05 (0.21) | 0.04 (0.19) | 0.06 (0.24) | 0.05 (0.22) |
| Workplace accident | 0.02 (0.12) | 0.01 (0.11) | 0.02 (0.14) | 0.02 (0.12) |
| Number of chronic diseases | 0.47 (0.82) | 0.42 (0.77) | 0.52 (0.85) | 0.52 (0.86) |
*Mean of dummy variables indicates the proportion of ones. na, not applicable.