141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

279891
Health of bakery workers in Lebanon

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Rima R. Habib, PhD , Department of Environmental Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
Background: Researchers have observed associations between Self-rated health (SRH) and a variety of individual factors including socioeconomic, health history and status, and occupational factors ranging from job insecurity to work stress. Objectives: This research examines the association between poor reports of health and several work-related variables among workers in Lebanese bakeries. Methods: A survey of 504 bakeries was carried out across Lebanon. A random sample of bakeries was selected from a GIS sampling frame. Interviews were conducted at bakeries with the consent of workers in 2010. The questionnaire assessed self-rated health, workplace concerns, job satisfaction and socio-demographic variables. Descriptive and logistic regression models are presented using SPSS 20.0. Results: Nearly 17% of workers reported poor self-rated health. About 78% of the workers were under the age of 51, 15% reported suffering a chronic illness, and 40% felt their employment was insecure. Workers suffering from chronic illnesses were three times as likely to report poor SRH (OR: 2.90; CI: 1.47-5.70), and those with 12-month reports of musculoskeletal pain had significantly higher reports (OR: 5.07; CI: 2.79-9.22). Workers perceptions that workplace temperatures negatively affected their health were 3.5 times more to report poor SRH; feelings of job insecurity were also associated with an increase (OR: 1.89; CI: 1.01-3.51). Conclusions: The relationship between SRH and other morbidities found in this study is well established in the literature, as is the link with job insecurity. This study highlights the need for improved workplace conditions and strengthened labor protections for workers in Lebanon's bakery industry.

Learning Areas:
Occupational health and safety

Learning Objectives:
Evaluate bakery workers’ self perceptions of their health vis-à-vis working conditions

Keywords: Health, Workplace Stressors

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am an Academician Researcher serving as an Associate Professor at an Academic Institution.
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.