INFLUENCE
OF INDUSTRIAL WASTE MANAGEMENT, WORKERS SAFETY PRACTICES AND OCCUPATIONAL
HEALTH ATTITUDE ON EMLOYEES HEALTH STATUS IN URBAN COMMUNITY IN, NIGERIA
Olaoke, Ibitola Olajumoke1, Popoola, Olusoji David2
1College of Health Sciences, Igbinedion University Okada Edo State, Nigeria.
2Department of Sociology & Anthropology Igbinedion University Okada, Edo State, Nigeria
Email: jummyt2011@gmail.com , popoolaolusojidavid@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
Industrial wastes are basically hazardous and as the name implies poses threat and potential risk to human health if not properly managed. Thus, this study examines effects of industrial waste management practices (incineration, recycling), worker’s safety practices and worker’s occupational health attitudes on employees’ health status in selected industries in Oyo State, Nigeria. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for this study while the study population comprised of industrial workers in Ibadan, Oyo State. Simple random sampling technique was used to select a sample of 270 employees and qualitative method ((use of questionnaire) was used for data. An instrument specially designed for this study tagged “Industrial Waste Management and Workers Health Status Inventory (IWMWHSI was used for data collection.). Two research hypotheses were tested and analyzed with the use of Multiple Regression analysis and Pearson Moment Correlation Analysis at 5% level of significance. Findings revealed that there was a positive significant correlation between incineration and workers’ health status (r= .32, N= 270, P < .05), a positive significant relationship between recycling and workers’ health status (r= .24, N= 270, P < .05), a positive significant relationship between workers’ safety practices and workers’ health status (r= .16, N= 270, P < .05), and a positive significant relationship between workers’ occupational health attitude and workers’ health status (r= .17, N= 270, P < .05) Result also showed that waste management practices independently and significantly influenced employees health status while waste management practices, workers safety practices, workers occupational health attitude jointly and significantly predicted employees health status. The study concludes that waste management practices, worker’s safety practices, worker’s occupational health attitude were strong predictors of employee’s health status in industries in Nigeria. We therefore recommend that government should put policy in place to regulate and punish offenders of standard waste management practices. Erring industries should be sanctioned and also pay heavy compensation to affected workers.
Keywords: Industrial, Waste Management, Workers Occupational Health Attitude, Workers Health status, Incineration, Recycling.