Employment status and use of respiratory protection among metalworkers, solderers and welders

Objectives: Reported associations of self-employment with
occupational injury and cerebrovascular disease suggest that worker
safety and health precautions may vary by occupational status. The
authors assessed the extent to which use of respiratory protection
and ventilation equipment is associated with self-employed versus
employee status among adults in an international study.Methods: The
European Community Respiratory Health Survey II (ECRHS II) is a
follow-up study conducted in a population-based random sample of
adult ECRHS I participants. Men and women enrolled in the ECRHS II
completed interviewer-administered questionnaires to provide
information about their occupational status and job history during
the 9-year ECRHS follow-up period. Respondents in selected
occupational groups completed supplemental questionnaires about
their jobs and use of respiratory protection and ventilation
equipment on-the-job. The authors assessed self-reported use of
respiratory and ventilation equipment among 72 self-employed and
371 employed adults in metalworking, soldering and welding
occupations.Results: Local exhaust ventilation (fixed extraction:
OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.80; mobile extraction: OR 0.23, 95% CI
0.09 to 0.60; on-tool extraction: OR 0.39, 95% CI 0.18 to 0.88) was
reported less frequently among self-employed respondents than among
employed respondents. The magnitude of the negative association
between self-employment status and any of the three types of local
exhaust ventilation was not attenuated by adjustment for duration
of work per day or week or asthma and/or wheezing symptoms.
Respiratory protection was not associated with employment status in
these data.Conclusions: More limited use of local exhaust
ventilation among self-employed workers compared to employees
suggests the need to promote occupational safety among
self-employed workers.