Abstract
Informal workers in developing countries are exposed to various occupational hazards that may cause accidents, injuries, or diseases. Personal protective equipment (PPE) can be an essential tool for preventing workers from exposure to these hazards. Despite the widely acknowledged benefits of PPE usage, many informal automobile artisans in Nigeria do not use PPE. This study examines factors that predict PPE usage among these artisans, particularly their occupational risk perception. This cross-sectional study adopted a multistage method to select 632 automobile artisans (mechanics, panel beaters, painters, and vulcanizers) in Osun State, Nigeria. A questionnaire was used to obtain information on the dependent variable (the use of PPE) and the independent variables (occupational risk perception and risk tolerance). STATA 14 was used for the multivariate logistic regression analysis. Workers who perceive themselves at high risk of occupational health problems are more likely to use PPE (odds ratio [OR] = 2.1, p = .03), as are those who are very worried about getting accidents/illnesses (OR = 2.6, p = .03) or believe that these health problems are preventable (OR = 2.3, p = .01). Contrary to expectation, workers who experienced accidents/illnesses in the past are less likely to use PPE (OR = 0.3, p = .00) than those who did not. The established positive relationship between occupational risk perception and PPEs’ usage provides information to various stakeholders for designing safety programs that can reduce exposure to the occupational risks for informal automobile artisans in Nigeria.
Highlights
Due to rapid urbanization and industrialization, automobile repair workers have become one of the largest occupational groups in many developing countries (Ojo et al, 2017)
The growing demand for services of this occupational group in these countries is due to the increased use of older vehicles supplied by industrialized countries. As these old fuel-guzzling vehicles are shipped into developing countries to avert recycling (Nwachukwu et al, 2011), they enter a “second life cycle” of continuous engine and body works: parts replacement and engine overhauling until they approach a “final end of life” (Nwachukwu et al, 2010). During this second life cycle, engine and transmission oil are more contaminated by fine metal particles due to increased wear and tear (Nwachukwu et al, 2010), which usually results in the frequent breakdown of vehicles making the services of automobile artisans invaluable
We explored the relationship between occupational risk perception and the use of protective equipment (PPE)
Summary
Due to rapid urbanization and industrialization, automobile repair workers have become one of the largest occupational groups in many developing countries (Ojo et al, 2017). The growing demand for services of this occupational group in these countries is due to the increased use of older vehicles (about 10–15 years old) supplied by industrialized countries As these old fuel-guzzling vehicles are shipped into developing countries to avert recycling (Nwachukwu et al, 2011), they enter a “second life cycle” of continuous engine and body works: parts replacement and engine overhauling until they approach a “final end of life” (after about 10–15 years) (Nwachukwu et al, 2010). These workers carry out tasks like draining fuel or handling dangerous substances that regularly expose them to dust, lead, used auto lubricants, exhaust fumes, or petroleum products
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