Health inequities and paid work in Latin America and the Caribbean : Better employment and working conditions for reducing health inequities

Silva-Peñaherrera, Michael

Health inequities and paid work in Latin America and the Caribbean : Better employment and working conditions for reducing health inequities

Document Type

Doctoral thesis
Published Version

Author

Silva-Peñaherrera, Michael

Director

Benavides, Fernando G. (Fernando García)
López Ruiz, María
Merino Salazar, Pamela Alexandra

Publication Date

2021-03-24

Pages

341 p.

License

Citation

Silva-Peñaherrera, M. Health inequities and paid work in Latin America and the Caribbean : Better employment and working conditions for reducing health inequities. 2021. handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10803/671366

This citation was generated automatically.

Doctoral program

Programa de doctorat en Biomedicina

Abstract

Objective: To examine health inequities in the working population of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) according to sex, age, level of study, occupation and formality or informality in employment. Methods: We collected microdata from the most recent national working conditions surveys, national health surveys, official registries and national statistics institutes, as well as data from international organizations. We harmonized and recoded datasets in order to make data comparable between countries, to the extent possible. We estimated health inequity gaps by means of simple and complex measures of inequity calculating absolute and relative values. All analyses were stratified by sex. Results: We found wide health inequities between occupational and educational groups in LAC. No evidence of progress in closing the health inequity gap over time was found. The wider health inequity gap was observed between countries. Informal employment negatively impacts population health, which is buffered by welfare state regimes. Conclusions. Addressing informal employment could be an effective way to improve population health in LAC. The welfare state is an important macro-level determinant of health that buffer the negative effects of poor working conditions on population health. Strengthening occupational health surveillance system in LAC countries is a priority, with a view towards informing policy

Keywords

Keywords: occupational health, health inequities, working and employment conditions Palabras clave: salud laboral, desigualdades en salud, condiciones de trabajo y empleo, Occupational health, Health inequities, Working and employment conditions, Salud laboral, Desigualdades en salud, Condiciones de trabajo y empleo