251181 Effects of social, economic and labor policies on occupational health disparities

Monday, October 31, 2011: 9:15 AM

Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH , Dept of Environmental & Occupational Health, George Washington University, Washington, DC
Liz Borkowski , Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, George Washington University, Washington, DC
Megan E. Gaydos, MPH , Environmental Health, San Francisco Department of Public Health, San Francisco, CA
C. Eduardo Siqueira, MD, ScD , Department of Community Health and Sustainability, UMass Lowell, Lowell, MA
     
Federal and local laws and the enforcement of them can have implications for health disparities. Some policies may mitigate adverse consequences, while others may exacerbate them. Worker health and safety standards, such as limits on exposure to toxic air contaminants, unguarded equipment or explosion hazards, have reduced injury and fatality rates among U.S. workers. However, failure to eliminate known risk factors for workplace injury contributes to health disparities among exposed workers. Laws that exclude certain groups of individuals, such as agricultural workers from minimum wage and overtime protections, may create or exacerbate health disparities among certain population groups. Policies related to hours of work, compensation and benefits, collective bargaining, and others will be examined for their potential impact on occupational health disparities. Case studies illustrating their influence will be offered, and areas for research will be discussed.

Learning Areas:
Occupational health and safety
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Public health or related public policy

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this presentation, the learner will be able to: (1) list at least three social, labor or economic policies at the federal, state or local level, that may mitigate or exacerbate occupational health disparities; (2) explain which populations are affected by the policy; (3) formulate a research question to assess the policy's impact on population health.

Keywords: Workplace Stressors, Labor-Management Relations

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I was a contributing author on the paper "Effects of social, economic and labor policies on occupational health disparities," and a participant at the NIOSH conference.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: Occupational Health Disparities Institute: Eliminating health and safety disparities at work: A panel discussion
See more of: Occupational Health and Safety