Racial and ethnic disparities in work-related injuries among teenagers

No current data exist on the difference in occurrence of work-related injury among minority teens, compared with white teens. Therefore, this study investigated the differences in workplace injury among white teens, African-American teens, and Hispanic teens.

An anonymous questionnaire was administered to teens in five Wisconsin school districts in May 2003. The questionnaire assessed work, characteristics of work, injury, characteristics of injury, and school performance.

There were 3574 teens who worked during the 2002-2003 school year. The distribution of jobs worked was similar among the races/ethnicities. Both Hispanic and African-American teens were more likely to report working more than 23 hours per week, compared with white teens. Both minority groups were significantly more likely to report having sustained a serious injury compared with white teenagers (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 3.07, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.86-5.04 for African-American teens; AOR = 2.27 95% CI = 1.27-4.05 for Hispanic teens).

Minority teens are more likely to report sustaining injuries at work. Although the jobs minority teens were working were similar to white teens, some of the characteristics of their jobs may be responsible for more hazardous working conditions, leading to a greater number of injuries.