Worker versus Employer Perspectives on Safety in the Forestry Services Industry.

Forestry services work presents high risk for injury, illness, and fatality. How worker and employer views of workplace safety compare influences the strategies to address hazardous working conditions. Interviews with forestry services workers and employers revealed themes about occupational hazards and ways to prevent work-related injury. Workers identified hazards related to the social and natural environments, and injury prevention solutions focused on interventions beyond their control and based on employer responsibility. Employers characterized hazards within job task contexts and tied solutions to worker behaviors to improve job task performance. Discordance between worker and employer reports indicates inconsistent views about what safety measures should be provided and pursued to effectively reduce injury risk. Because many workers in the forest services industry are marginalized due to their immigrant documentation status and being racially/ethnically minoritized, power differentials between workers and employers can also influence how workplace safety and health measures are determined and implemented.

Essential Elements for Effective Safety and Health Education in Postsecondary Construction Career Technical Education.

Because Career Technical Education (CTE) programs at the community/technical college level are among the few places new construction workers receive training or preparation, they are an important vehicle for educating new and young workers about occupational health and safety (OSH). We developed recommendations for (1) OSH "core competencies" that all postsecondary construction students should achieve and (2) "essential elements" for OSH education in construction training programs. Based on a review of the literature, subject matter expert focus groups, and iterative engagement with an expert advisory group, we identified fourteen core competencies and a list of essential supporting elements at the school, program, and instructor levels. Knowledge and recognition of the importance of effective safety and health management systems served as the foundation for elements and competencies. Findings provide an important starting point for systematically improving the preparation of construction CTE students that can help keep them safe on the job.

System Failure: Work Organization and Injury Outcomes among Latino Forest Workers.

OBJECTIVES: Forestry services is a hazardous industry with high job-related injury, illness, and fatality rates. The Northwest workforce is largely Spanish-speaking, Latino, and immigrant, working in poor conditions with insufficient attention paid to safety and health. Institutional racism fundamentally shapes the structural vulnerability of Latino immigrant workers. Given this context, we sought to understand how workplace organizational factors and safety climate affect job-related injuries in this industry. METHODS: We developed 23 case studies from personal interviews after selecting from an initial participant survey pool of 99 Latino forest workers in southern Oregon who had been injured at work in the previous 2 years. Workers were recruited through snowball sampling and door-to-door canvassing. Questions spanned work conditions, tasks, employer safety practices, injury experience, medical treatment, and workers' compensation benefits. RESULTS: Workers reported broken bones, chainsaw lacerations, back pain, heat and pesticide illnesses, and other occupational injuries. One-third of the cases fell into a Systems Functional category in which they reported their injuries to their supervisors and received medical treatment and workers' compensation benefits. The remaining two-thirds experienced System Failures with difficulties in receiving medical treatment and/or workers' compensation benefits, employer direction to not report, being fired, or seeking alternative home remedies. CONCLUSION: Workers employed by companies with more indicators of safety climate were more likely to obtain adequate treatment for their injuries and fully recover. Workers for whom interpretation at medical exams was provided by someone unaffiliated with their employers also reported better treatment and recovery outcomes.

Factors affecting high school teacher adoption, sustainability, and fidelity to the "Youth@Work: Talking Safety" curriculum.

BACKGROUND: Our objective was to identify individual- and organizational-level factors that affect high school teacher adoption, sustainability, and fidelity to the occupational safety and health curriculum, "Youth@Work: Talking Safety." METHODS: We analyzed survey data collected from 104 high school teachers across the US who were trained in the curriculum since 2004. Linear and Cox regression were used to examine bivariate associations between individual and organizational-level factors and the outcomes of interest. RESULTS: Except for perceived complexity, all individual-level factors (acceptance, enthusiasm, teaching methods fit, and self-efficacy) were associated with one or more outcomes of interest (P-values ranged from <0.001 to 0.031). Priority for non-academic courses (P = 0.035) and supportive organizational climate (P = 0.037) were the organizational-level factors associated with sustainability and number of lessons delivered, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with the literature, individual-level factors influenced teacher adoption and, to a lesser extent, sustainability, and fidelity to the Youth@Work: Talking Safety curriculum and should be considered in attempts to promote the curriculum's use in high schools.

Working in the Shadows: Safety and Health in Forestry Services in Southern Oregon.

We conducted a small participatory survey to document occupational injuries and illnesses, medical treatment, wage issues, and general working conditions among 150 forest workers in southern Oregon who are mostly Spanish-speaking immigrants from Latin America. We used snowball sampling in administering the survey. Survey results showed a high rate of job-related injury among the workers who responded to our survey. Results also suggested that many forestry services contractors licensed in Jackson and Josephine counties may not always follow labor laws. The vast majority of workers surveyed reported being fearful of retaliation for reporting injuries. There were no differences in reported working conditions and wage issues between workers with H-2B visas and other workers in the sample. This finding suggests that current US labor and health and safety laws are not effectively protecting Oregon's forest workers, owing to forest workers' structural vulnerability-their low positioning in social structures supported by immigration and economic status-compounded by fear of retaliation. Immigration policies and enforcement practices that contribute to creating a labor system with these inherent vulnerabilities and power imbalances need to be further examined and changed.

Evaluation of a pilot promotora program for Latino forest workers in southern Oregon.

BACKGROUND: Forest work, an occupation with some of the highest injury and illness rates, is conducted primarily by Latino immigrant workers. This study evaluates a pilot program where promotoras (lay community health educators) provided occupational health and safety trainings for Latino forest workers. METHODS: Evaluation methods included a focus group, post-tests, and qualitative feedback. RESULTS: Community capacity to address working conditions increased through (i) increased leadership and community access to information and resources; and (ii) increased worker awareness of workplace health and safety rights and resources. Fear of retaliation remains a barrier to workers taking action; nevertheless, the promotoras supported several workers in addressing-specific workplace issues. CONCLUSIONS: For working conditions to significantly improve, major structural influences need to be addressed. A long-term, organizationally supported promotora program can play a key role in linking and supporting change at the individual, interpersonal and community levels, contributing to and supporting structural change.

Shaping the future: ten years of the occupational health internship program.

The Occupational Health Internship Program (OHIP) was initiated in 2003 to recruit a new, diverse generation of occupational safety and health (OSH) professionals and to advance OSH within union and community-based initiatives. It retains the principles of the original OCAW/Montefiore internship program while adapting to the changed landscape of the 21st-century workplace. Case studies of OHIP projects illustrate how students have contributed to key OSH policies-to regulate silica exposure among construction workers, apply principles of green chemistry with Vietnamese nail salon workers, and integrate OSH into "green" jobs in the recycling industry. They have supported innovative campaigns with immigrant workers in contingent jobs-from taxi drivers to warehouse workers. The students, in turn, have been inspired to enter the OSH arena as professionals and worker advocates with the potential to contribute new energy to an OSH movement.

Restaurant supervisor safety training: evaluating a small business training intervention.

OBJECTIVE: We developed and assessed a program designed to help small business owners/managers conduct short training sessions with their employees, involve employees in identifying and addressing workplace hazards, and make workplace changes (including physical and work practice changes) to improve workplace safety. METHODS: During 2006, in partnership with a major workers' compensation insurance carrier and a restaurant trade association, university-based trainers conducted workshops for more than 200 restaurant and food service owners/managers. Workshop participants completed posttests to assess their knowledge, attitudes, and intentions to implement health and safety changes. On-site follow-up interviews with 10 participants were conducted three to six months after the training to assess the extent to which program components were used and worksite changes were made. RESULTS: Post-training assessments demonstrated that attendees increased their understanding and commitment to health and safety, and felt prepared to provide health and safety training to their employees. Follow-up interviews indicated that participants incorporated core program concepts into their training and supervision practices. Participants conducted training, discussed workplace hazards and solutions with employees, and made changes in the workplace and work practices to improve workers' health and safety. CONCLUSIONS: This program demonstrated that owners of small businesses can adopt a philosophy of employee involvement in their health and safety programs if provided with simple, easy-to-use materials and a training demonstration. Attending a workshop where they can interact with other owners/ managers of small restaurants was also a key to the program's success.

Review of the Federal Child Labor Regulations: updating hazardous and prohibited occupations.

BACKGROUND: Child labor regulations are intended to protect our young and most vulnerable workers. While regulations are not the only strategy for providing a safe and healthy work environment for young workers, they are the first step in setting the community standard to protect them. The world of work has changed since the first child labor laws were issued in 1939. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) enlisted assistance from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to evaluate the current list of hazardous and prohibited occupations and to make recommendations for changes to the regulations. METHODS: A group of national experts reviewed the recommendations made by NIOSH. The consensus review process identified areas of agreement, disagreement, and priorities for the DOL's Wage and Hour Division. Gaps in the hazardous orders not addressed in the recommendations were also identified. RESULTS: This commentary describes the background of the Hazardous Orders under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the evaluation by NIOSH, the process used to review it, and recommendations for further action. CONCLUSIONS: The NIOSH report is a valuable resource for anyone working to prevent occupational injuries-among adult and young workers alike. It is crucial that the DOL use the guidance provided by NIOSH and the Young Workers Safety and Health Network to improve the protections for young workers.