Hispanic fatalities on the job; the numbers are staggering
At least it wasn’t a fatality. I just found out that a Guatemalan co-worker of mine, Aniceto, was injured from stepping awkwardly off a curb at work. His knee was immediately swollen and he could barely walk. He called my mom first because he wasn’t sure where to turn. He doesn’t have health care, and as an independent contractor does not qualify for worker’s compensation benefits either. My mom’s good friend, Piers Barry, is an orthopedic surgeon. He has actually done a few X-rays for me as well over the years. He said he would help out and see Aniceto at no cost. With my mom’s help, Aniceto was able to get into a doctor, receive an X-ray, and get a diagnosis. Dr. Barry needed an MRI so my mom helped him pay the $500 out of pocket for that service. Fortunately, nothing serious was wrong. The MRI indicated just a stretched tendon that needed rest and physical therapy.
This had me thinking of all the other Hispanic workers that do not have healthcare. And all the others that work on jobs that are more dangerous and have a higher propensity for injury.
I did a little research tonight and found the following:
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) reports in a 2019 survey called “Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect” that Latino works continue to be more vulnerable to losing their lives on the job than other ethnicities here in the United States. In this survey, the data reported that there were a total of 903 Latino deaths and that California had the second-highest Latino worker fatality rate in 2017 (next to Texas) with 173 employee deaths. Even more staggering was that 68% or 116 of those deaths were same-year immigrants. The majority of these workers were in the construction industry, and the second-highest was landscaping and waste management then agriculture. (1)
In 2017, 3.7 per hundred Latino workers suffered a fatality. In 2019, this has jumped to 4 per hundred according to the Texas Standard. In 2018, there were 916 fatalities, and in 2019, this jumped to 1,088. (2)
There are several reasons for this. First, they work in more physically “dangerous” industries that require long hours and often heavy machinery. Secondly, there is a large education gap. Even with safety training, with their language barrier is it more difficult for them to understand important safety measures that must be followed. Third, many of these lower-wage industries do not have Union protection. Lastly, they often do not have access to appropriate healthcare. Employees either don’t provide healthcare or they provide only catastrophic coverage.
Unfortunately, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has very limited resources. They currently have the lowest number of inspectors since the 1970s (1). The Trump administration continued to eliminate safety rules and requirements for employers. They also cut worker safety funding including health training and job safety research.
I think it is important to make a few important federal policy changes that will hopefully trickle down to the State legislature:
1. Increase federal and state funding for OSHA administration including inspection, safety education, and training
2. Encourage the expansion of Unions in lower-wage industries
3. Require companies to provide comprehensive healthcare to all employees regardless of their wages.
Without changes to current policy regarding labor protection and safety at work, as well as expanded mandated healthcare coverage, employees like Aniceto, won’t have successful outcomes for injuries on the job.
Sources: