Risk factors for nonfatal work injury for young workers: a review of two relevant literatures.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Breslin FC ; Smith PM
• Description:
  The inverse relationship between age and non-fatal work injuries is one of the most consistent associations found in occupational health and safety research [Laflamme and Menckel 1995; Salminen 2004]. Depending on the data source, both teenagers and young adults in developed countries have rates of work injury up to two times those of workers over 25 years of age [Breslin et al. 2003; CDC 2001; Dupre 2001; Laflamme and Menckel 1995; Salminen 2004]. Many of the work injuries youth sustain have clear health and economic consequences. For example, 15 to 26 per cent of injured workers under age 18 have reported permanent impairments such as chronic pain, scarring, sensory loss, and loss of range of motion. [Parker et al. 1994a,b]. In addition, serious injuries such as fractures and amputations though relatively rare (rate of compensation claims with permanent impairment among working 15 to 19 year olds = 0.59 per 1000 fulltime equivalents (FTEs); [Breslin et al. 2003] are clearly a concern because of the long-term health and disability consequences [Breslin et al. 2003]. Labor market trajectories may also be affected given that 16- to 24-year-olds who sustained a work injury have significantly lower earnings - about $1,000 (Canadian dollars) -- in the year after they returned to work than their uninjured counterparts [Breslin et al. 2007c]. This paper reviews the quantitative literatures for two related questions regarding risk factors of work injuries for teenage (15- to 19-years-old) and young adult (20- to 24- years-old) workers: a) What risk factors might account for youth's elevated work-injury rates compared to adult workers; and b) Among young workers, what risk factors are associated with experiencing a work injury? Although the term "risk factor" can have somewhat different meanings in different disciplines, for this paper a risk factor refers to an individual or situational characteristic statistically associated with, although not necessarily causally related to, an increased likelihood of a health event [Stedman 2006], and that is independent of other potential risk factors. The term, "young worker" has been defined both narrowly and broadly. Policy- makers and researchers -- especially in the U.S. -- define young workers as those less than age 18 because most child labor laws only apply to this age group [NRC 1998]. An alternative definition includes young adults up to age 24. This broad definition recognizes that many young adults are often in the same labor market niche as adolescents, and young adults are also more likely than older adults to sustain a work injury. In this review, we used the latter definition. In terms of review scope, studies focusing exclusively on work injuries occurring in agricultural settings were not included because a recent review covered this literature [Reed and Claunch 2000]. Also, this review does not include studies focusing on specific occupational diseases among young workers, such as asthma or dermatitis. Even though occupational disease is an important topic, published and unpublished reviews of this area exist [Breslin et al. 2006a; Pollack 2001]. In addition, given the chronic course of many diseases, the risk factor issues associated with occupational diseases can be quite different than for acute injuries.
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Confined Spaces Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety
• Keywords:
  Adolescents Injuries Occupational Accidents Risk Factors Teenagers Traumatic Injuries Young Workers
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Conference/Symposia Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  North Carolina ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  80-104
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20058891
• Citation:
  Health and safety of young workers: proceedings of a U.S. and Canadian series of symposia. Runyan CW, Lewko J, Rauscher K, Castillo D, Brandspigel S, eds. Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2013-144, 2013 May; :80-104
• Editor(s):
  Runyan CW ; Lewko J ; Rauscher K ; Castillo D ; Brandspigel S
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2013
• Performing Organization:
  University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20060831
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2013-144
• End Date:
  20110228
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:f898b7df23c0f7f26699fd61b9d9c98a704601019754871268ceb11ad618ace1ab3f99d6b6862459649401dbee4ac391a962051e12d0e2a6b1200a82c05a93a8
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/181859/cdc_181859_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 698.17 KB ]