Construction employment mortality among Mexican immigrants in the South Eastern United States, 2003-2013

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate occupational and non-occupational mortality among Mexican immigrants in the South Eastern United States. The construction industry has the highest burden of occupational fatalities in the USA of all industries, and foreign-born Hispanic workers are disproportionately affected. Design/methodology/approach Data were obtained from 3,093 death certificates maintained by the Consulate General of Mexico in Atlanta, Georgia. Standardized mortality ratios (SMR) were used to compare occupational-related deaths among construction industry occupations, and logistic regression models were used to examine the relationship between manners of death not related to occupation and employment in the construction industry. Findings The proportion of Mexican immigrants who died from occupational injuries is higher among all construction workers (SMR = 1.31), roofers (SMR = 2.32) and carpenters (SMR = 2.25) than other workers. Among the population in this analysis suicide [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 0.63] and death from natural causes (aOR = 0.70) were inversely related to work in the construction industry. Research limitations/implications Interventions to reduce occupational fatalities among Mexican migrant construction workers should target roofers and carpenters. Future research should further investigate the industry’s association with suicide and natural death. Originality/value This is one of the first analyzes that investigated associations between construction industry employment and non-occupational fatalities among immigrants. The analysis provides evidence that a large portion of the Mexican immigrant population is used in the construction industry (38%) and face elevated risks for occupational fatalities and the results of this investigation should encourage greater surveillance of occupational illness and injury among foreign-born immigrants who work in construction, as well as other high-risk industries.

Trends in fatal occupational injuries in Latino/a workers relative to other groups, North Carolina 2000–2017

“…Our results are consistent with research showing Latino/a workers as experiencing the highest rate of fatal occupational injury nationwide 8,18–24 . Workers in southern states, especially those who labor outside, are at special risk of illness due to heat and humidity, especially in agriculture and construction 9,25–29 .…”

“…[15][16][17] Our results are consistent with research showing Latino/a workers as experiencing the highest rate of fatal occupational injury nationwide. 8,[18][19][20][21][22][23][24] Workers in southern states, especially those who labor outside, are at special risk of illness due to heat and humidity, especially in agriculture and construction. 9,[25][26][27][28][29] Early work on construction safety noted characteristics of the worker, including English-language proficiency, documentation status, cultural factors, and the desire to appear industrious, as contributors to inequities between groups of workers.…”

Disentangling Rates, Risk, and Drivers of Suicide in the Construction Industry

“…It was difficult to make direct comparisons between studies due to the differences in samples and comparison groups (mentioned above), as well as differences in statistical methods. Despite this, 13 studies demonstrated statistically significant higher rates or risk of suicide for CIWs in juxtaposition to one or both of their comparison groups (Alicandro et al, 2020;Andersen et al, 2010;Hawkins et al, 2020;Heller et al, 2007;Järvholm & Stenberg, 2002;Kposowa, 1999;Liu & Waterbor, 1994;Maheen et al, 2020;Milner et al, 2014;Notkola et al, 1993;Robinson et al, 1999;Stern & Haring-Sweeney, 1997;Van-Wijngaarden, 2003;Welton et al, 2020;Windsor-Shellard & Gunnell, 2019).…”

From a Personal Commitment to a Safety Scale: Development and Validation of a Self-Reported Safety Practices Scale for Latino Day Laborers

“…The various hazards they frequently encounter in their workplaces often result in severe and non-severe injuries that can lead to temporary or permanent incapacitation (Fernández-Esquer et al, 2015, 2021). LDL often endure these exposures while employed with small construction companies or private contractors that exercise minimal oversight and that discourage LDL from demanding safer work conditions (Flynn et al, 2015; Welton et al, 2020). Factors such as discrimination, undocumented status, and labor exploitation contribute to the structural vulnerability of LDL (Fernández-Esquer et al, 2021; Negi et al, 2020; Valenzuela et al, 2006).…”