Organizational Approaches to Total Worker Health for Low-Income Workers

Details

• Personal Author:
  Sorensen GC
• Description:
  The Workplace Organizational Health Study addressed health and safety risks for low-wage workers in the food service industry by evaluating an intervention designed to improve organizational conditions of work. This proof-of-concept trial study tested the feasibility of an intervention targeting safety and ergonomics, work intensity, and job enrichment. The study was conducted in collaboration with a large, multinational company that provides food service through contractual arrangements with corporate clients, with participating worksites located in the Greater Boston area. Ten worksites were selected from 60 eligible worksites in the geographical region to participate in this study; these sites were randomly assigned to intervention or control conditions. The 13-month intervention was launched in five intervention sites in October 2018. Due to the worksite closures resulting from COVID-19 shutdowns, final data collection from frontline workers and some site managers was curtailed, and as a consequence, findings on potential improvements in working conditions and workers' safety, health and well-being are not available. Instead, the primary evaluation used process evaluation data to assess the intervention feasibility, and qualitative data to identify organizational factors contributing to or hindering intervention implementation. The intervention was tailored to each site based on understanding of the work context, work demands, and relationships. Approximately two-thirds of the planned in-person or phone contacts occurred. The research team additionally met regularly with senior leadership and district managers, who provided corporate resources and guidance. The financial pressures, competing priorities and the fast-paced work environment placed constraints on site managers' availability and limited the full implementation of the intervention. Findings underscore the need for ongoing commitment and support from both the parent employer and the host client. Although the study team worked closely with site managers responsible for worksite operations, they found that many organizational changes required resources and support from decision makers at other levels. These findings highlight the need for identifying the key gatekeepers and decision makers for targeted organizational changes. Future research will benefit from considering the increasing complexity of work relationships. The contributions of this study include an expanded understanding of the process of implementing an organizational intervention in a low-wage food service setting; consideration of the complexities introduced by contracted work environments, with blurred accountability for worker health and safety; and insights into the barriers to and facilitators of the process of implementing this organizational intervention in this complex setting. Intervention resources, disseminated with the corporate partner, illustrate the applicability of a Total Worker Health(R) model in implementing interventions to improve organizational conditions of work. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Environmental Exposure Ergonomics Food Handling Food Industry Health Promotion Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Workload Workplace

  More +
• Keywords:
  Environmental Exposure Exposure Levels Food Services Health Programs Health Protection Intervention Qualitative Analysis Risk Factors Safety Programs Total Worker Health TWH Work Capability Work Capacity Work Environment Worker Health Workers Worker Safety

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• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-18
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20064545
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2022-100416
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, R01-OH-010811, 2021 Oct; :1-18
• Contact Point Address:
  Glorian C. Sorensen, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 450 Brookline Avenue, Boston MA 02215-5450
• Email:
  glorian_sorensen@dfci.harvard.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2022
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services
• Performing Organization:
  Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20160801
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20200731
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d453e8995b07c85cd1a88bb1876e58507e6a0a1d8cd914cc24053a5e730df6b91d437c0fd58c7cd15122244ea1e42f35951a23bfeff32eb6ad38586b5a2dcc0a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/219100/cdc_219100_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.29 MB ]