Worker Perspectives on COVID-19 Risks: A Qualitative Study of Latino Construction Workers in Oakland, California

Erika Meza (), Leslie Giglio, Ana O. Franco, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Laura Stock, John Balmes, Jacqueline M. Torres and Alicia Fernandez
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Erika Meza: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
Leslie Giglio: Department of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA
Ana O. Franco: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
Elizabeth Rodriguez: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
Laura Stock: Labor Occupational Health Program, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
John Balmes: Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
Jacqueline M. Torres: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
Alicia Fernandez: Department of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 16, 1-11

Abstract: Latino construction workers in the U.S. have faced a disproportionate risk for COVID-19 infection in the workplace. Prior studies have focused on quantifying workplace risk for COVID-19 infection; few have captured workers’ experiences and perspectives. This study describes COVID-19-related workplace risks from the perspectives of Latino construction workers. We conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured phone interviews with Latino construction workers from the Fruitvale District of Oakland, California. Twenty individuals were interviewed from December 2020 to March 2021. Nearly all participants (19/20) were Spanish-speaking men; mean age 42.6 years. The majority were low-income and over one-third did not have health insurance. Participants worked in varied construction-related jobs ranging from demolition to office work; additionally, four were day laborers, and three belonged to a labor union. We identified four major themes with public health policy and workplace safety implications: (1) Major concern about the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection for family health and economic wellbeing; (2) Clarity about mask use and social distancing but not disclosure; (3) Variability in access to additional resources provided by employers; and (4) Uncertainty around structural support for SARS-CoV-2 quarantine/isolation. Our findings provide further evidence from workers’ own perspectives of the major gaps experienced during the pandemic in workplace protections and resources.

Keywords: COVID-19; occupational health; essential workers; construction workers; Latino health; immigrant health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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