Institute for Work & Health, 481 University Ave., Suite 800, Toronto, ON M5G 2E9, Canada.
Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, 155 College Street, 6th floor, Toronto, ON M5T 3M7, Canada.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018 Sep 14;15(9):2004. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15092004.
Recent immigrants and refugees have higher rates of work-related injuries and illnesses compared to Canadian-born workers. As a result, they are often labelled as vulnerable workers. This study explored the factors that contribute to occupational health and safety (OHS) vulnerability of recent immigrants and refugees with a focus on modifiable factors such as exposure to hazards and access to workplace protections, awareness of OHS and worker rights, and empowerment to act on those rights. Eighteen focus groups were conducted with 110 recent immigrants and refugees about their experiences looking for work and in their first jobs in Canada. A thematic content analysis was used to organize the data and to identify and report themes. The jobs described by participants typically involved poor working conditions and exposure to hazards without adequate workplace protections. Most participants had limited knowledge of OHS and employment rights and tended to not voice safety concerns to employers. Understanding OHS vulnerability from the lens of workplace context can help identify modifiable conditions that affect the risk of injury and illness among recent immigrants and refugees. Safe work integration depends on providing these workers with information about their rights, adequate job training, and opportunities for participating in injury prevention.
与加拿大出生的工人相比,新移民和难民的工作相关伤害和疾病发生率更高。因此,他们通常被贴上弱势工人的标签。本研究探讨了导致新移民和难民职业健康和安全(OHS)脆弱性的因素,重点关注可改变的因素,如接触危害和获得工作场所保护、对 OHS 和工人权利的认识,以及对这些权利采取行动的能力。本研究对 110 名新移民和难民进行了 18 次焦点小组讨论,了解他们在加拿大找工作和第一份工作的经历。采用主题内容分析法对数据进行组织,并确定和报告主题。参与者所描述的工作通常涉及恶劣的工作条件和接触危害,而没有适当的工作场所保护。大多数参与者对 OHS 和就业权利的了解有限,往往不会向雇主提出安全问题。从工作场所背景的角度理解 OHS 的脆弱性,可以帮助确定影响新移民和难民受伤和患病风险的可改变条件。安全的工作融合取决于为这些工人提供有关其权利的信息、充分的工作培训以及参与预防伤害的机会。