Linnan Laura, Arandia Gabriela, Bateman Lori A, Vaughn Amber, Smith Natalie, Ward Dianne
Department of Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2017 Mar 9;14(3):283. doi: 10.3390/ijerph14030283.
Over one million women are employed in child care and are among the lowest wage workers in the US. The health and working conditions of 674 child care workers (118 administrators and 556 staff) from 74 centers is described using baseline data from a larger intervention trial. Participants were 39.9 (±13.0) years old; 55.4% African American, 37.1% Caucasian, and 5.3% of Hispanic ethnicity. Seventy-six percent reported having an Associate's degree or less; 42% were classified as at or below poverty (<$20,000); and exhibited many health risks such as excess weight, insufficient activity, poor diet, and inadequate sleep. We investigated potential differences by income and job category. Lower income participants were significantly more likely to be current smokers (19.9% vs. 11.7%), drink more sweetened beverages (1.9 vs. 1.5), and report higher depressive symptoms (15.5 vs. 12.6). Administrators worked more hours weekly compared to staff (46.4 vs. 40.6), are less active (100 vs. 126 min/week), more sedentary (501 vs. 477 min/day), and reported higher job demands (13.3 vs. 12.5). Given the numerous health issues and challenging work conditions, we hope our results serve as a call to action for addressing low wages and the work environment as a means of influencing the health and well-being of child care workers.
超过100万女性从事儿童保育工作，她们是美国工资最低的工人之一。利用一项更大规模干预试验的基线数据，描述了来自74个儿童保育中心的674名儿童保育工作者（118名管理人员和556名工作人员）的健康和工作条件。参与者的年龄为39.9（±13.0）岁；55.4%为非裔美国人，37.1%为白人，5.3%为西班牙裔。76%的人报告拥有副学士学位或更低学历；42%的人被归类为处于贫困线及以下（年收入低于2万美元）；并且存在许多健康风险，如体重超标、活动不足、饮食不良和睡眠不足。我们调查了收入和工作类别之间的潜在差异。低收入参与者当前吸烟的可能性显著更高（19.9%对11.7%），饮用更多甜味饮料（1.9杯对1.5杯），并且报告有更高的抑郁症状（15.5对12.6）。与工作人员相比，管理人员每周工作时间更长（46.4小时对40.6小时），活动更少（每周100分钟对126分钟），久坐时间更长（每天501分钟对477分钟），并且报告有更高的工作要求（13.3对12.5）。鉴于存在众多健康问题和具有挑战性的工作条件，我们希望我们的研究结果能成为采取行动解决低工资和工作环境问题的呼吁，以此来影响儿童保育工作者的健康和福祉。
