Objectives:
Forestry services is a hazardous industry with high job-related injury, illness, and fatality rates. The Northwest
workforce is largely Spanish-speaking, Latino, and immigrant, working in poor conditions with insufficient attention paid to
safety and health. Institutional racism fundamentally shapes the structural vulnerability of Latino immigrant workers. Given
this context, we sought to understand how workplace organizational factors and safety climate affect job-related injuries in
this industry.
Methods:
We developed 23 case studies from personal interviews after selecting from an initial participant survey pool of 99
Latino forest workers in southern Oregon who had been injured at work in the previous 2 years. Workers were recruited through
snowball sampling and door-to-door canvassing. Questions spanned work conditions, tasks, employer safety practices, injury
experience, medical treatment, and workers’ compensation benefits.
Results:
Workers reported broken bones, chainsaw lacerations, back pain, heat and pesticide illnesses, and other occupational
injuries. One-third of the cases fell into a Systems Functional category in which they reported their
injuries to their supervisors and received medical treatment and workers’ compensation benefits. The remaining
two-thirds experienced System Failures with difficulties in receiving medical treatment and/or
workers’ compensation benefits, employer direction to not report, being fired, or seeking alternative home
remedies.
Conclusion:
Workers employed by companies with more indicators of safety climate were more likely to obtain adequate treatment for
their injuries and fully recover. Workers for whom interpretation at medical exams was provided by someone unaffiliated with
their employers also reported better treatment and recovery outcomes.