Department of Community Development and Applied Economics, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, 05405, USA.
Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA.
J Immigr Minor Health. 2021 Oct;23(5):965-975. doi: 10.1007/s10903-021-01232-5. Epub 2021 Jul 5.
Latino immigrant dairy workers face significant challenges. Dairy's employment of immigrants is recent compared to other sectors, though today immigrants account for over half of US dairy workers. This study applies the Migrant Farmworker Stress Inventory to dairy for the first time. Interviews of 173 workers were conducted using the MFWSI, augmented with dairy specific indictors. Bivariate analysis identified associations between dairy worker characteristics and stress. Findings were compared to other studies using the MFWSI. Average stress was 74.6/156 points, with 36.5% at risk for clinically significant stress. Vermont ranked eighth among 11 MFWSI studies, and fourth of seven studies for significant stress. Primary stressors differed from studies of fruit and crop workers. Over a third of Vermont immigrant dairy workers risk debilitating stress. The MFWSI underestimates dairy farmworker stress and should be modified for this sector. Identified stressors indicate Spanish-language, dairy safety training may be beneficial.
拉美裔移民奶业工人面临重大挑战。与其他行业相比，奶业雇佣移民的时间较晚，但如今移民占美国奶业工人的一半以上。本研究首次将移民工人压力量表应用于奶业。使用 MFWSI 对 173 名工人进行了访谈，并辅以奶业特定指标。单变量分析确定了奶业工人特征与压力之间的关联。研究结果与使用 MFWSI 的其他研究进行了比较。平均压力为 74.6/156 分，有 36.5%的人面临临床显著压力的风险。佛蒙特州在 11 项 MFWSI 研究中排名第八，在 7 项有显著压力的研究中排名第四。主要压力源与水果和作物工人的研究不同。超过三分之一的佛蒙特州移民奶业工人面临致残压力。MFWSI 低估了奶业工人的压力，应针对这一领域进行修改。确定的压力源表明，西班牙语、奶业安全培训可能是有益的。
