Nailing Race and Labor Relations: Vietnamese Nail Salons in Majority-Minority Neighborhoods

Hoang, Kimberly Kay

doi:10.1353/jaas.2015.0017

Cited by 13 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…In addition, ethnic business networks promote the nail salon business among immigrants as a means of earning an income. Vietnamese immigrants traditionally hold the largest stake in the nail salon industry and dominate the salon business workforce, however, in recent years, increasing numbers of Chinese, Korean, and Hispanic immigrants have joined the industry as well [4, 5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterizing Occupational Health Risks and Chemical Exposures Among Asian Nail Salon Workers on the East Coast of the United States

Wei

Husni

et al. 2019

J Community Health

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The products used in nail care services contain toxic chemicals. This study aimed to characterize occupational health risk factors and chemical exposures among Asian nail salon workers on the East Coast of the U.S. for informing the development of more effective, culturally appropriate interventions. We conducted a community-based participatory research (CBPR) study to characterize occupational health risks. A face-to-face, self-reported survey was performed, and personal exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was evaluated. Three VOCs, acetone, methyl methacrylate (MMA), and toluene, were measured using 3M 3500 organic vapor monitors. We collected data on 112 workers with 100 personal chemical exposure measurements from 25 nail salons. Self-reported health problems that emerged or worsened after participants started working in the nail salon industry included headaches (8%); lightheadedness (9.8%); and irritation to the nose, eyes, throat, and skin (21.2%). Approximately 70% of participants reported that they had been pregnant, 11.7% of whom had at least one miscarriage. The mean concentrations of acetone, MMA, and toluene were 18.51 parts per million (ppm), 39.45 ppm, and 0.09 ppm, respectively. Mean concentrations of acetone and MMA measured from salons in New York City were significantly lower than those measured in Philadelphia and southern New Jersey. CBPR proved to be as an efficient approach for recruiting hard-to-reach Asian immigrant nail salon workers. Adverse health symptoms and problems associated with providing nail salon services were identified in these workers. Further studies are needed to better understand the long-term health effects of chronic chemical exposures in nail salon environments.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterizing Occupational Health Risks and Chemical Exposures Among Asian Nail Salon Workers on the East Coast of the United States

Wei

Husni

et al. 2019

J Community Health

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“…Recent work engages with the topic of immigrant entrepreneurship through theories of intersectionality and colorblind racism (see Nopper 2010), complicating existing conceptions of immigrant entrepreneurs by highlighting intraethnic class distinctions, racial stereotyping, and colonial legacies as factors that shape the conditions of immigrant entrepreneurship. Hoang (2015) brings an intersectional lens to the ethnic enclave literature, challenging the focus on race as a stable category. In her study of Vietnamese American nail salons in predominantly Mexican and African American neighborhoods she analyzes owner-client, owner-worker, and worker-client relationships, and how these three sets of interactions comprise a triangular system of labor relations.…”

Section: Immigrant Entrepreneurshipmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards an Economic Sociology of Race

Hirschman¹,

Garbes²

2019

Preprint

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Race is central to economic life, but race is not central to economic sociology. We argue that economic sociologists should treat racism as a constitutive, structuring force, analytically co-equal with capitalism, patriarchy, and nationalism. Our article has three aims. First, we document how canonical and award-winning works of economic sociology do not discuss race and racism, and do not engage with the contemporary sociology of race. Second, we identify six key insights from the sociology of race and suggest how they could influence economic sociology: the emergence of race out of racism, an understanding of racism as structural, the role of whiteness, the intersections between racism and other systems of oppression, the ideology of colorblind racism, and the fundamental connections between racism and capitalism. Third, we conclude by discussing recent research that bridges the two subfields and lays the groundwork for an understanding of "racialized markets" and "racialized economies".

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“…For example, Kimberly Kay Hoang () richly describes and explicates what she coins to be a “triangular system of labor relationships” in Vietnamese owned nail salons in California. Hoang explains how race and class relations are mutually constitutive; moreover, those relations are steered in various directions according to the type of interaction that occurs between racial and ethnic minorities.…”

Section: Triangulating In New Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

On the Job: White Employers, Workers of Color, and Racial Triangulation Theory

Cruz

2016

Sociology Compass

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This article offers that Claire Jean Kim's theory of racial triangulation provides an ideal framework to study workers of color, the racialization of their labor and the ways in which actual and potential employers neglect and discriminate against these workers. Specifically, the piece determines that racial triangulation theory bolsters analysis of race-based power that employers exert in the construction and maintenance of racial inequality in regard to management of labor and employment possibilities for workers of color. A triangulated approach allows for a sharp focus on employer engineered labor market inequality as they oversee, hire, and refuse to be racially inclusive in hiring practices. Most significantly, racial triangulation theory addresses the forces of racial inequity within the meso-level of U.S. social structure when applied to study of organizational dynamics such as workplaces. I open the article by assaying historical and contemporary studies on workers of color to illustrate white employer domination and the ways in which workers of color are referenced to each other as inferior and superior workers. Subsequently, the article looks to fresh analytical directions in which sociologists can evaluate racism as a triangulated, multidimensional social force in the workplace and other social contexts.

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Nailing Race and Labor Relations: Vietnamese Nail Salons in Majority-Minority Neighborhoods

Cited by 13 publications

References 26 publications

Characterizing Occupational Health Risks and Chemical Exposures Among Asian Nail Salon Workers on the East Coast of the United States

Characterizing Occupational Health Risks and Chemical Exposures Among Asian Nail Salon Workers on the East Coast of the United States

Towards an Economic Sociology of Race

On the Job: White Employers, Workers of Color, and Racial Triangulation Theory

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