Insofar as work is a fundamental activity in life, we try to show the importance of gaining a better understanding of its dimensions for incorporation into analyses of the set of collective health problems. This is why we have adopted approaches that explore the concept of the activity of work, together with studies of gender relations, bearing in mind that in both cases the aim is to underline the different dimensions of work. Using the activity of work concept, we get closer to the non-standardizable, changeable and variable nature of life and work situations. We use the concept of health in Canguilhem’s work, which draws attention to the active relationship between the individual and his environment (of work), with a view to outlining a debate on the possibility of creating health norms. The materials dealing with gender-based division of labor - basic material of gender relations - combine with the issues raised by the concept of the activity of work, which also provide elements to a better perception of the health/work relationship. At the interface of these two points of view (work as activity and as the embodiment of gender relations) we come face to face with the importance of the experience of workers in the generation of knowledge concerning health and the need for multiple forms of intervention.
Activity of work; Gender relations; Worker’s health