Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America.
Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2024 Sep 10;19(9):e0307734. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0307734. eCollection 2024.
This study examines inequities in access to paid sick leave (PSL) by race/ethnicity, income, and sex and the role of PSL access on leave-taking and care-seeking behaviors among Seattle-area workers in the months leading up to and during the emergence of COVID-19 in the region. Survey responses were collected online and in-person from individuals experiencing acute respiratory illness symptoms between November 2019 and March 2020 as part of a community-based respiratory viral surveillance study. Chi-square tests and log-binomial models were used to assess the association between PSL access and various socioeconomic indicators. A total of 66.6% (n = 2,276) respondents reported access to PSL. Proportionally, access to PSL was highest in respondents identifying as Asian (70.5%), followed by White (68.7%), Latine (58.4%), Multiracial (57.1%), Black (47.1%), and Other (43.1%). Access to PSL increased with household income. Eighty three percent of high-income respondents reported access compared to 52.9% of low-income households. Only 23.3% of the lowest-income households reported access to PSL. Fewer females (65.2%) than males (70.7%) reported access to PSL. Access to PSL is inequitably distributed across income, race/ethnicity, and sex. This study reinforces the vast body of knowledge on how socioeconomic inequalities increase individual and community-level vulnerability to the impacts of infectious disease outbreaks. It also supports the role of labor and economic policy in mitigating (or exacerbating) these impacts. Exemplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, universal access to PSL, especially for marginalized populations, benefits all.
本研究考察了种族/族裔、收入和性别获得带薪病假（PSL）的机会不平等，以及在 COVID-19 疫情在该地区出现前后，PSL 获得机会对西雅图地区工人休假和寻求护理行为的影响。调查结果是通过在线和面对面的方式从 2019 年 11 月至 2020 年 3 月期间出现急性呼吸道疾病症状的个体中收集的，这是一项基于社区的呼吸道病毒监测研究的一部分。卡方检验和对数二项式模型用于评估 PSL 获得与各种社会经济指标之间的关联。共有 66.6%（n=2276）的受访者报告获得了 PSL。按比例计算，亚洲人（70.5%）获得 PSL 的比例最高，其次是白人（68.7%）、拉丁裔（58.4%）、多种族（57.1%）、黑人（47.1%）和其他（43.1%）。PSL 获得机会随着家庭收入的增加而增加。高收入受访者中有 83%报告获得了 PSL，而低收入家庭中只有 52.9%。收入最低的家庭中只有 23.3%报告获得了 PSL。获得 PSL 的女性（65.2%）少于男性（70.7%）。PSL 的获得在收入、种族/族裔和性别方面分配不均。这项研究加强了大量关于社会经济不平等如何增加个人和社区层面对传染病爆发影响的脆弱性的知识。它还支持劳动和经济政策在减轻（或加剧）这些影响方面的作用。以 COVID-19 大流行为例，普遍获得 PSL，特别是为边缘化人群提供 PSL，对所有人都有利。
