WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH

Information Dissemination, Sources, and Needs

Among Trade Associations and Labor Organizations

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

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WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH

Information Dissemination, Sources, and Needs

Among Trade Associations and Labor Organizations

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

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DISCLAIMER

Mention of any company or product does not constitute endorsement by the National

Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). In addition, citations to websites

external to NIOSH do not constitute NIOSH endorsement of the sponsoring organizations

or their programs or products. Furthermore, NIOSH is not responsible for the content of

these websites. All web addresses referenced in this document were accessible as of the

publication date.

ORDERING INFORMATION

To receive documents or other information about occupational safety and health topics,

contact NIOSH:

Telephone: 1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636)

TTY: 1-888-232-6348

CDC INFO:

or visit the NIOSH website at niosh.

For a monthly update on news at NIOSH, subscribe to NIOSH eNews by visiting

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This report was adapted from the study ¡°Workplace Safety and Health Information Dissemination, Sources, and Needs Among Trade Associations and Labor Organizations¡± conducted by

Andrea Okun, Janice Watkins, and Paul Schulte. Special thanks go to Susan Afanuh and Seleen

Collins for their editorial assistance, Stephen Gilbert for his statistical support, and Bermang

Ortiz for his contributions to data visualization.

SUGGESTED CITATION

NIOSH [2017]. Workplace safety and health information dissemination, sources, and needs

among trade associations and labor organizations. By Scholl JC, Okun AH, Schulte PA, Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication

No. 2017- 166.

DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2017- 166

July 2017

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Workplace Safety and Health Information Dissemination, Sources, and Needs Among Trade Associations and Labor Unions

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

From April 2008 to April 2009, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

(NIOSH) conducted the survey, ¡°Workplace Safety and Health Information Dissemination,

Sources, and Needs among Trade Associations and Labor organizations.¡± The survey obtained

information from business and professional associations and labor organizations to better

understand how they obtain workplace safety and health information and communicate it to

their members. The organizations also provided information about their perception and use

of NIOSH as a source of workplace safety and health information. Because business and professional associations and labor organizations are powerful resources for providing information

to their members, the survey results are intended to improve NIOSH¡¯s efforts to partner with

these organizations. Improved partnerships will enable NIOSH to better reach employers and

employees with workplace safety and health information.

NIOSH has a long history of partnering with individual business and professional associations

and labor organizations on projects designed to prevent occupational injuries and illnesses.

These associations are crucial to the mission of NIOSH because they are trusted sources of

occupational safety and health information and guidance that are essential to their industry

[Bol¨¦at 2003]. This study was the first effort of NIOSH to systematically obtain information

from business and professional associations and labor organizations within the eight original

National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) industrial sectors about the communication

channels they use and the types of workplace safety and health information they provide to

their members. This study also gathered feedback about their knowledge and perception of

NIOSH and its products and services.

Of the 2,324 organizations contacted for inclusion in the survey, only 308 completed the full

survey instrument. In contrast, a total of 1,640 respondents completed a two-question short

form, which allowed NIOSH to assess the extent of workplace health and safety information

distribution for the overall sample. Among the 1,948 organizations responding to either the

full survey instrument or the short form, approximately 40.9 % of labor organizations, 15.6%

of business associations, and 9.6% of professional associations indicated they distribute workplace safety and health information to their members. Large differences were also observed

between the eight NORA industrial sectors, with the construction sector having the highest

percentage of organizations disseminating workplace safety and health information to their

members and the service sector having the lowest percentage.

Of the 308 organizations responding to the full survey instrument, over 95% of all three organization types indicated they disseminate workplace safety and health information to their

members. This was in sharp contrast to the 1640 organizations completing the short form

where only 7.5% of the labor organizations, 0.8% of the business associations, and 1.5% of

the professional association indicated disseminating workplace safety and health information

to their members. The low percentage of organizations completing the full-survey instrument

may in large part be due to the lack of occupational safety and health activities conducted

within these organizations.

Workplace Safety and Health Information Dissemination, Sources, and Needs Among Trade Associations and Labor Unions

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