Unsafe in construction. One group of young, immigrant workers wins the prize for most at-risk in construction. Hear about the study from NIOSH and ASSE.
Hispanic immigrant construction workers under 25, who don’t speak English, and work for small companies, have the highest injury and death rate. In this podcast, Dan Clark explains why, based on the study “Overlapping Vulnerabilities: The Occupational Safety and Health of Young Immigrant Workers in Small Construction Firms.”
The study was published this month by NIOSH, The National Institute For Occupational Safety and Health, and ASSE, The American Society Of Safety Engineers.
TRANSCRIPT:
(:00)
intro music and effects
(:04)
Dan Clark: One ethnic group—or part of it—is the most unsafe in construction. I’ll tell you who they are, and why they’re at risk.
Hello, I’m Dan Clark of The Safety Brief, tackling health and safety hazards in today’s demanding industrial and construction worksites, a service of Creative Safety Supply.
Let me whip a little discount on you. Make your order at creativesafetysupply.com and use coupon code BIG10. It saves you 10%.
(:31)
NIOSH, The National Institute For Occupational Safety and Health, and ASSE, The American Society Of Safety Engineers, just released a joint report. A report about people who rack up more accidents than any other group.
○ They are Hispanics. But, not just any Hispanics.
○ They are young Hispanics, under 25. But not just any young Hispanics under 25.
○ They are young Hispanic immigrants under 25 who don’t speak English.
(1:01)
○ To narrow this group down even more, these young Hispanic immigrants under 25 who don’t speak English, also have little training, and work for small construction companies. Small construction companies almost always have limited safety training resources.
This perfect storm of inexperience, insufficient training and limited communication skills puts these workers at risk.
HOW BIG IS THE PROBLEM? Hispanics make up 20% of the construction workforce. Of those, 75% are immigrants, says The US Census Bureau. They’re the only ethnic group to have an uptick in workplace fatalities in the year 2013.
(1:41)
THE SOLUTION? If you’re an employer, be acutely aware of this at-risk group. Employers are still responsible for the workers’ safety, even with language and cultural differences. OSHA urges companies to offer hands-on training and a thorough skills evaluation before ever putting a worker out on the job site.
(2:01)
That’s all for this episode, Ethnic Group Most Unsafe In Construction. Come back for more ways to stay safety compliant in today’s ever-changing landscape of safety requirements. I’m Dan Clark of The Safety Brief, a service of Creative Safety Supply. Save 10% off your entire order at creativesafetysupply.com with coupon code BIG10.
(2:25)
END
sounds provided by www.freesfx.co.uk and www.audiosoundclips.com