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Day Laborer Project Occupational Health Internship Gabriel Rivera and Mona Christine Lee UCLA LOSH 05 August 2005

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Work hazards faced by immigrant workforce at day labor center in Hollywood.

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Page 1: Hollywood Final Draft

Day Laborer Project Occupational Health Internship

Gabriel Rivera and Mona Christine LeeUCLA LOSH

05 August 2005

Page 2: Hollywood Final Draft

Objectives Gain a better understanding of day laborers by learning from

the workers and literature (demographics, cultural proclivities, policies and politics).

• Identify health and safety risks associated with the work of Day Laborers.

• Create a culture of health and safety in the workplace.

Page 3: Hollywood Final Draft

Background of Day Laborer

UCLA Center for Study of Urban Poverty’s random sample of 481 workers (Valenzuela, 1999):

• Day laborers overwhelmingly Latino (predominantly from Mexico)• Fairly young and are either recent (less than one year) arrivals in

the United States or have been in this country for a long period of time (10+ years).

Page 4: Hollywood Final Draft

Background of Laborer Continued…

• Routine abuse of day laborers at the work place. – Non-payment of wages – Breach of agreed payment– No breaks or water at the work site– Unsafe or hazardous working conditions

Page 5: Hollywood Final Draft

Background of Laborer Continued…

• Richardson (2004), Mexican immigrants were at higher risk of non-fatal workplace injury or illness than any other gender/race/ ethnicity group, 82% greater that of all workers.

• Fabrega V, Starkey S. (2001), found that although Latinos made up less than16% of the construction workforce, they suffered 23.5% of fatal injuries (2001).

• Occupational Safety and Health Administration (2001), report that in areas where they have implemented aggressive construction safety training programs among Hispanic workers, combined with increased compliance inspections, fatality rates have declined significantly.

Page 6: Hollywood Final Draft

IDESPCA Community Job Centers

Page 7: Hollywood Final Draft

Nationalities of Day Laborers at the Hollywood Community Job Center

35%

32%

17%

15%

1%

MexicoGuatemalaEl SalvadorHondurasCuba

Internal IDEPSCA Data, April 2005

Page 8: Hollywood Final Draft

Type of Employment

83%

5%

4%3%

3% 2%

General Labor

Painting

[1]Other

Carpentry

Cleaning

Gardening

Plumbing

Internal IDEPSCA Data, April 2005

Page 9: Hollywood Final Draft

Type of Employer

87%

10%3%

Sub-Contractor orContractor

Business Owner

Homeowner/Individual

Internal IDEPSCA Data, April 2005

Page 10: Hollywood Final Draft

Methods

Based on Grounded Theory (Strauss and Corbin, 1990).

• Literature review• Assembly meetings and training session• Health and Safety presentation, ie. Risk map• Ethnographic observation• Fourteen in-depth conversations or interviews• Two worksite visits (Hollywood Hills and Beverly

Hills)

Page 11: Hollywood Final Draft

Health and Safety Presentation:Risk Map of Gardening Site

Page 12: Hollywood Final Draft

Findings

Page 13: Hollywood Final Draft

Examples of Past Injuries

• Allergic skin reaction • Blunt trauma to the head, ie. metal ladder, large

drill• Lower back pain and general musculoskeletal

pain• Eye and respiratory irritation from chemicals

used in roofing and painting• Fall from rooftop resulting in hand surgery

Page 14: Hollywood Final Draft

WORKERS RECOGNIZE MOST HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS

– Workers identified the following as risks:• Poor quality equipment, ie. skill saw without

plastic guard, cheap masks.• Working with hazardous material, ie. asbestos

from insulation and lead from paint in old building, poison oak.

– Extreme weight lifting, ie. cement bags, refrigerators, washing machines.

Page 15: Hollywood Final Draft

MOST WORKERS ARE NOT PROVIDED WITH PERSONAL

PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE)

• Workers are familiar with the safety equipment utilized in the workplace, but often not supplied or used.

• Workers use inventive methods to protect themselves, ie. vasoline and a wet towel.

Page 16: Hollywood Final Draft

WORKERS ARE NOT PROVIDED ADEQUATE INTRODUCTION OR

ORIENTATION

• Workers are lucky to have five minute orientation or introduction:– May attain employer contact information in

case of emergency.– May be warned of safety hazards

• But for the most part, they only:– Know name of employer– Receive additional information if employer

likes or values them.

Page 17: Hollywood Final Draft

A Case Study: Rodolfo

• Jalisco, Mexico• Primary employment: Painter• Injury: General eye irritation from

paint exposure • Aware of the health hazards

associated with lead containing paint, but selectively uses PPE – sanding down a small area of paint

does not require a mask

• He carries his own PPE in a backpack

• Small damp rag and Vaseline • Amber, the exception amongst

employers

Page 18: Hollywood Final Draft

Limitations/Lessons Learned

• Project time constraint• Qualitative/Case studies• Trust issue• Limited work site visits

Page 19: Hollywood Final Draft

Project Successes

• Establishing rapport allowed for a better understanding of the occupational health and safety risks of Day Laborers.

• Created an awareness amongst Day Laborers of health and safety in the work place.

Page 20: Hollywood Final Draft

Recommendations

• A mentoring network can be developed to promote career development and prevent further exploitation

• Interactive workshops on injury prevention • Qualitative/quantitative study

– Why do some Day Laborers report and others do not?– At what point do workers decide to protect their

health?– How do Day Laborers prioritize their own health at the

work place?– How does access to health care services determine

utilization of services?

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Acknowledgements

• IDEPSCA

• Linda Delp, Lizette Paredes, Deogracia Cornelio, UCLA Labor Occupational Health (UCLA-LOSH)

• Suzan Luu, SoCalCOSH

• Victor Narro, UCLA Labor Center

• Hollywood Community Job Center

• Day laborer participants

• OHIP team