Dr. Dobson brings 20+ years of research and professional experience into her new role at Healthy Work Campaign. In an effort to bring together researchers, labor, business leaders, and union leaders, she plans to present 40 years of research about workplace stress to the public. This will help create healthier, more productive work environments in America.
Marnie Dobson, Ph.D. was announced as the new director of the Healthy Work Campaign. The Center for Social Epidemiology in California has created the Healthy Work Campaign. This campaign is focused on advocacy and research for workplace stress and public safety. Dr. Dobson will continue to serve as the Associate Director at the Center Social Epidemiology. Additionally, she will continue to be an Assistant Adjunct professor at the University of California Irvine Center for Occupational and Environmental Health.
Dr. Dobson’s interest in job-stress research stemmed from her childhood watching her parents struggle to make ends meet in low-paying jobs in Australia. When her father, a taxi driver, organized his fellow transport workers to negotiate better pay and working conditions with their employer, Dobson was inspired to become interested in the mental and physical effects workplace stress has on their bodies. Dobson became a union organizer for student workers after her father’s success in improving work conditions.
Dobson shares the following: “Working people in crisis in American workplaces,” says Dobson, when discussing why this is a crucial time to launch the Health Work Campaign. The Healthy Work Campaign is focusing a lot on finding out why the American economic system is so behind other modern economies when addressing workplace stress.
The initiative aims to help both employers and workers see the benefits of creating healthy workplaces. Dobson believes that workplace stress is not an isolated problem. This is why she and her colleagues have created a collaborative approach to creating change.
Dr. Dobson brings almost 20 years of academic and professional experience to the Healthy Work Campaign. As a social scientist who specializes in occupational health, Dr. Dobson has worked closely with blue-collar workers as well as labor unions throughout her career. Her approach to workplace stress reduction in the United States is to build partnerships between labor, managers, and researchers. Dobson insists that the “voices” of workers are crucial to improving the culture at work in the United States.
Dr. Dobson says, “Listening to workers share how work stress affects their lives, health, and families is of paramount importance.” Dobson often refers back to her research as a systematic approach to collecting the voices and experiences from workers. The Healthy Work Campaign uses multimedia content to amplify worker stories. The organization’s mission is to work with unions, workers, and businesses to transform workplaces into healthier environments that will ultimately improve the health of workers.
Dr. Dobson is now the Director of Healthy Work Campaign. She coordinates with colleagues and expands knowledge outreach. As Director, her personal goal is to make accessible educational materials that bring together 40 years of scientific research about workplace stress for a wider audience.
