INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION AND QUALITY OF LIFE OF WORKERS IN

J. Human Ergol., 24: 13-23, 1995

Center for Academic Publications Japan. Printed in Japan .

INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION AND QUALITY OF LIFE OF WORKERS IN BANGLADESH

A. KHALEQUE and M. S. ELIAS

Psychology Department, Dhaka University, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh*Psychology Department, Rajshahi University, Rajshahi-6205, Bangladesh

The present study was designed to investigate the effects of industrial

pollution on the quality of life of workers in Bangladesh. A total of 110 workers comprising 60 from a polluted industry and 50 from a non-

polluted industry were randomly selected for this study. The measuring instruments used were: The Inventory of Subjective Health (DIRKEN, 1967), The General Health Questionnaire (GoLDBERG, 1972), The Occu-pational Stress Index (SRIVASTAVA and SINGH, 1981), The Life Descrip-tive Scale (WRIGHT, 1988), and the Interview Schedule on Personal and Health Related Questionnaire (KHALEQUE, 1988). The results showed that the workers of the polluted industry suffered more from health

problems and were less satisfied with their quality of life than those of the non-polluted industry. The results also revealed that the workers' health , well-being and quality of life were also affected by unhygienic home environment, malnutrition, transport problems, and lack of health care facilities. The result supported the view that the workplace pollution and the health and well-being of the workers were negatively related to each other.

Industrial effluents emissions are the major sources of environmental pollution

(WHO, 1977), and pollution can cause major damage to human health and well-being (KOZLOwsKI and KRASUCKI, 1979). Epidemiologic studies on respira-tory symptoms showed that the prevalence rates of respiratory symptoms of people in severely polluted areas were higher than that in less-polluted areas (Japan Environment Agency, 1986). Long-term animal exposure experiments showed that ambient air pollution caused a slight increase in acute and chronic lung inflam-mation and proliferation of peripheral bronchiolar epithelia (EMIK et al., 1971; NAKAJIMA, 1972; HYDE et al., 1978; OKA et al., 1982). In addition to occupational hazards, pollution and water contamination resulting from township industry has

Received for publication April 30, 1993 .

13

14 A. KHALEQUE and M. S. ELIAS

become a big threat to the health of the workers. Results of water pollution

(EVANS and JACOBS, 1981) have suggested that chemicals in drinking water might also hamper cognitive efficiency and impair task performance. Poor working conditions have been found to affect job satisfaction, health and the quality of working life of the workers significantly (KHALEQUE et al., 1991; VAERNES et al., 1988).

Compared to the industrially developed countries of the world, the magnitude of industrial pollution in Bangladesh is not yet alarming, but recently there has been an increasing trend of industrialization and the level of industrial pollution in some specific regions of the country is quite high, which has created localized environ-mental problems (QUADERI, 1982).

For transporting incoming raw materials and outgoing finished products, most of the large industrial polants in Bangladesh are located along the banks of the big rivers or near big cities. Consequently, these industrial plants discharge their effluents directly into rivers or the air regardless of environmental damage. A report by the Environment Pollution Control Department of Bangladesh revealed that about 1,000 industrial units have been causing environmental pollution and contamination in Bangladesh through discharge of pollutant wastes, such as toxic chemicals, poisonous gases, harmful solid and liquid wastes (EPCD, 1985). A recent survey conducted by the Department of Environment, Government of Bangladesh, indicated that the concentration of sulfur dioxide, suspended par-ticulate matters and nitrogen oxide in the ambient air have exceeded the standard limits (Department of Environment, 1990).

There are some indications of adverse consequences of industrial pollution on the health, well-being and quality of life of workers in Bangladesh (KHALEQUE and ELIAS, 1990; KHALEQUE et al., 1991). So, the present study was conducted for better understanding of the effects of industrial pollution on the health, well-being and overall quality of life of the workers in Bangladesh.

METHOD

Research setting. The present study was conducted in one polluted industry and another non-polluted industry. The polluted industry is a tannery and the non-polluted industry is an electric bulb factory. Both industrial plants are located in the periphery of Dhaka City.

The tannery was chosen from a list of industries which were identified as

polluted by the Environment Pollution Control Department, the Government of Bangladesh (EPCD, 1985). The bulb industry was chosen from another list of industries which were identified as non-polluted by the same department.

The tannery industry, where this study was conducted, was found to cause environmental pollution and contamination through discharge of pollutant waste

(EPCD, 1985). The tannery wastes contain pollutants, such as physical (i.e. solids

INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION AND QUALITY OF LIFE 15

and grease or oil), organic and toxic chemicals . Analysis of the wastes revealed

highly suspended (organic and inorganic) solid content. The organic portion of the

waste comes from the chemicals used in the process and the flesh and hair scooped

from rawhide, etc. The effluent showed that dissolved oxygen was nil and the waste

was totally septic.

The polluted industry under study is one of the largest tannery industries in

Bangladesh. It is a private sector enterprise, with nearly 250 workers employed in

its different departments. On the other hand , the non-polluted industry is also a

large bulb manufacturing private enterprise in Bangladesh , with 150 employees

working in its different departments.

The work schedules of the tannery and the bulb industries are 8 h per day and

6 days per week.

Samples. A total of 110 workers were randomly selected as subjects for this

study using a simple random sampling method without replacement technique .

Among them, 60 subjects were selected from the 250 workers of the polluted

tannery industry and the remaining 50 were selected from the 150 workers of the

non-polluted industry. The mean age and job experience of the subjects from the

polluted industry were 27•} 7 (SD) and 8 •} 6 years and those from the non-polluted

one were 32±4 and 11±4 years, respectively . The educational qualification of the

subjects varied from primary to graduation levels.

•@ Measuring instruments. The following measuring instruments were admin-

istered for collecting data for the present study.

Inventory of Subjective Health: This scale was developed by DIRKEN (1967)

to assess health complaints. It consists of 58 items, including 10 filler items, relating

to different facets of subjective health. The inventory was found to be significantly

correlated with the inventory of WILDE (1963) . An internal consistency coefficient

of 0.91 for this scale was reported by DIRKEN (1967). The adapted Bengali version

of the inventory was used in the present study (KHALEQUE and RAHMAN, 1987).

•@ General Health Questionnaire (GHQ): This questionnaire was developed by

GOLDBERG (1972). This is a self-administered screening test for detecting minor

psychiatric disorders. It consists of 12 items with 4-point Likert-type scaling. The

original and subsequent studies have provided evidence of the validity of the GHQ .

The mean corrected item-whole correlation for the GHQ was 0 .84 and the alpha

coefficient was 0.82. The adapted Bengali version of the questionnaire was used in

the present study (KHALEQUE and SIDDIQUE, 1984).

•@ Occupational Stress Index: This scale was developed by SRIVASTAVA and

SINGH (1981) for measuring an employee's perceived stress arising from various

components of his job. It consists of 46 items with 5 alternative responses . Out of

48 items, 28 are "true keyed" and 18 are "false keyed ." The split-half reliability and

alpha coefficients for the scale were found to be 0.94 and 0 .90, respectively. This

scale was used by RAHMAN and SORCAR (1990) for measuring the occupational

stress of working women in Bangladesh.


Life Descriptive Scale: This scale consists of 10 pairs of items. Each pair consists of adjectives, one of which describes an aspect of life favorably and the other unfavorably. The two adjectives are presented in a 7-point continuum ranging from most favorable (1) to most unfavorable (7). The Life Descriptive Scale used in this study was developed by WRIGHT (1978). This scale was used for obtaining positive or negative evaluation of the overall quality of life of the working

people. The reliability coefficient of 0.88 for this scale was reported by WRIGHT (1978). The Bengali version of the scale was used in the present study (RAHMAN and SoRCAR, 1990).

The Interview Schedule on Personal and Health Related Questionnaire: In addition to the above mentioned scales, an interview schedule (KHALEQUE, 1988) was also used in the present study for obtaining some personal information of the subject. This interview schedule consisted of two parts. Part 1 of the interview schedule was intended to collect personal and demographic information of the subjects and was prepared on the basis of existing literature as well as on the

practical situation prevailing in the factory. There were a total of 12 questions in this part. Part 2 of the interview schedule consisted of 24 questions. This part was used for collecting information regarding health-related factors.

RESULTS

The results based on the scores of the five measuring instruments used in the

present study are presented in Tables 1 to 10. The data of the Subjective Health Inventory are summarized in Tables 1 and 2. Table 1 shows the mean, standard deviations and t values of the responses on

the Subjective Health Inventory. The results in Table 1 reveal that the mean score of subjective health com-

plaints of the workers of the polluted industry is significantly higher than that of the workers of the non-polluted industry. Thus, the results showed that the workers of the polluted industry suffer from more health problems than the workers of the non-polluted industry. To assess the effect of job experience on the health of the workers of polluted and non-polluted industries, the workers of each industry were split into two groups (longer and shorter experience groups) on the basis of their median length of job experience.

Table 2 shows the mean scores of subjective health complaints of the workers with longer and shorter job experience in the polluted and non-polluted industries.

Table 1. Difference between the mean scores of subjective health complaints of the workers of the polluted and the non-polluted industries.


Table 2. Mean scores of subjective health complaints of the workers of the polluted and non-polluted industries with longer job experience (above the median)

and shorter job experience (below the median) .

Two-way ANOVA was computed on the scores of the Subjective Health Inventory to see the effects of job experience and pollution on the health of the workers. The results showed that the main effect of pollution was significant (F= 20.90; p < 0.00 1), but the main effect of job experience was not significant. How-ever, the interaction between pollution and job experience was significant (F= 3.00; p<0.05).

So the results showed that the workers with longer job experience suffer from significantly more health problems than the workers with shorter job experience in the polluted industry. However, there was no such effect on the workers of the non-polluted industry.

The result based on the scores of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) are

presented in Tables 3 and 4. The mean scores of mental health based on the data of the GHQ of the workers

of the polluted and non-polluted industries are shown in Table 3. The results in Table 3 reveal that there is a significant difference between the

mean scores of mental health complaints of the two groups of workers . Thus the results clearly showed that the workers of the polluted industry suffer from more

psychological problems than the workers of the non-polluted industry. The scores of mental health complaints of the workers of the two industries

compared in terms of the length of their job experience (i .e. median split of job experience) are presented in Table 4.

Table 3. Difference between the mean scores of mental health of the workers

of polluted and non-polluted industries.

Table 4. Mean scores of mental health complaints of the workers of the polluted and the non-polluted industries with longer (above median) and

shorter (below median) job experiences.


Table 4 shows that the mean scores of mental health complaints of the workers with longer job experience (i.e. above the median length of job experience) and with shorter job experience (i.e. below the median length of job experience) in the

polluted and the non-polluted industries. Two-way ANOVA was performed on the data of the GHQ to see the effects of job experience and industrial pollution on the mental health of the workers. The results showed that the main effect of pollution was significant (F=24.65;

p <0.001) but the main effect of job experience was not significant. However, the interaction between job experience and pollution was significant (F= 5.18;

p <0.05). So the results indicated that the workers with longer job experience suffer from significantly greater degree of mental health problem than the workers with shorter job experience in the polluted industry. However, the length of job experience has no significant effect on the mental health of the workers of the non-polluted industry.

The results based on the scores of the Occupational Stress Index are presented in Tables 5 and 6.

The mean scores of occupational stress of the workers of the workers of the

polluted and non-polluted industries are presented in Table 5. The results in Table 5 show that the workers of the polluted industry have to

bear significantly greater degree of job stress than the workers of the non-polluted industry.

The scores of the Occupational Stress Index of the workers of the polluted and non-polluted industries, compared in terms of median split of their length of job experience are presented in Table 6.

Table 6 shows the mean scores of occupational stress of the workers with longer job experience (above the median length of job experience) and shorter job experience (below the median length of job experience) in the polluted and the non-polluted industries.

Table 5. Difference between the mean scores of occupational stress of the workers


Table 6. Mean scores of occupational stress of the workers of the polluted and non-polluted industries with longer (above median) and shorter (below median) job experiences.


Two-way ANOVA was computed on the scores of the Occupational Stress Index to explore the effects of job experience and pollution on the occupational stress of the workers. The results revealed that the main effect of pollution on occupational stress is significant (F=19.00; p <0.001) . However, the main effect of job seniority is no significant but the interaction between pollution and job seniority is significant (F=4.29; p<0.05). Therefore, the results indicate that the senior workers of the polluted industry suffer from significantly greater degree of occupa-tional stress than the junior workers. However, job seniority has no significant effect on the job stress of the workers of the non-polluted industry . The data of the workers perceived quality of life based on the scores of the Life Descriptive Scale are presented in Table 7.

The results in Table 7 showed that there are significant differences between the workers of the polluted and non-poluted industries in perceiving some indices of their quality of life. It is evident from the results in the above table that out of 10 different aspects of life, the subjects of the two groups differed significantly only on 3 aspects and there were no significant differences between them concerning the 7 other indices of perceived quality of life.

The data collected with the help of the Interview Schedule on Personal and Health Related Questionnaire are summarized in Tables 8 and 9.

The results of the workers' perception of the conditions of pollution of their home, workplace and raw materials are presented in Table 8.

The results in Table 8 reveal that the levels of pollution are highly related to the workers' perception of their work environment as unhygienic. Almost 95% of the workers of the polluted industry consider their work environment unhygienic as compared with only 30% of the workers of the non-polluted industry . The results concerning their perception of home environment show that there is a significant

Table 7. Difference between the indices of perceived quality of life of the workers



Table 8. Chi square test between the frequency of responses of the workers of the two industries

on the questions "Whether they consider their home and work environments

unhygienic, and exposure to noxious raw materials risky for health."

Table 9. The workers' perception of health problems and risk factors.

association between the levels of pollution and the workers' consideration of their home environment as unhygienic. Moreover, it is evident from Table 8 that there is a significant association between the levels of pollution and the exposure to noxious agents. More than 98% of the workers of the polluted industry consider that the exposure to noxious agents is a health risk factor.

Besides workplace pollution, the health and well-being of the workers are also affected by some other factors. These are shown in Table 9.

The results in Table 9 reveal that the majority of workers of the polluted industry consider unhygienic workplace and home environment, insufficient health care facilities, exposure to toxic raw materials and noxious agents are some of the important sources of their health problems as compared to the workers of the non-polluted industry. Moreover, transport problems, fatigue, anxiety and tension are some of the health risk factors as perceived by the majority of workers of the

polluted industry than that of the non-polluted one.

DISCUSSION

The present study provided consistent indications of adverse consequences of


workplace pollution on the health, well-being and quality of life of the workers . The results concerning subjective health complaints revealed that the workers

of the polluted industry suffered from more physical health problems (such as respiratory illness, coughing, pain in chest, palpitation and throbbing of heart, loss of sleep, stomach upset and loss of appetite, headache, feeling of dizziness and irritation) than the workers of the non-polluted industry.

Similary, the results concerning mental health complaints, stress and fatigue showed that the workers of the polluted industry suffer from more mental health

problems (such as anxiety, tension, frustration, depression, alienation and lack of job satisfaction), a greater degree of stress (such as threat to health, well-being and survival, problem of adaptation, feat of incapability and impoverishment, role overload and conflict), and more fatigue (such as lowering of energy, reduction of speed and accuracy, feeling of drowsiness, decrement of arousal and alertness) than the workers of the non-polluted industry.

The greater degree of physical and mental problems, stress and fatigue of the workers of the polluted industry could be due to the harmful effect of pollution resulting from the toxic chemicals used in the tannery industry (such as chromium and ammonia) and various types of gaseous contaminants (such as suspended

particulate matters, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide etc.). The findings of the present study are supported by a number of other studies

(e.g. ILO, 1978; VAERNESS et al., 1988). The review of relevant literature revealed that environmental pollution was directly related to the workers physical and mental health problems, stress and fatigue (FILLEY,1972; KHALEQUE et al., 1991). It was evident from several studies that exposure to various toxic chemicals and air

pollutants caused different types of health problems, such as indigestion, loss of appetite, lethargy, depression, insomnia, headache, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases (e.g. GARDNER and LOOSLI, 1970; EMIK et al., 1971; FRENCH et a!.,1973; HIGGINS and FERRIS, 1973; REY et al., 1977; KHALEQUE and ELIAS, 1990).

The present study revealed that the workers with longer job experience suffer from greater degrees of stress, fatigue and health problems than the workers with shorter job experience in the polluted industry. So the results supported the view that prolonged industrial exposure to toxicity, even at a low dose could cause more harm to the individual than relatively short time exposure. Similarly, it was found that workers who were living in the polluted industrial area have registered more health complaints than those who were not living in the polluted area. The reason for this might be that those who were working and living in the polluted area were being repeatedly and continuously (up to 24 h a day) exposed to toxicity. Contin-uous exposure to a toxic environment has been found to cause cumulative adverse effect on the health and well-being of the individual (WHO, 1977).

The present study further showed that over 95% of the workers of the polluted industry have considered their workplace unhygienic and 75% of them have acquired illness after joining the present work and they have to consult doctors and


take sick leave quite frequently.

Besides workplace pollution, some other factors which have been found to

affect the workers quality of life, include unhygienic home environment, smoking,

old age, malnutrition, lack of health care facilities, overtime work and transport

problems. Thus, the present study provided clear and consistent evidence of the harmful

effect of industrial pollution on the health, well-being and quality of life of the

workers. Nevertheless, we suggest further longitudinal studies on a larger sample

of workers for assessing the long-term consequences of industrial pollution.

However, in the light of the present findings, it might be concluded that given

the nature of raw materials used in the tannery, it seems quite difficult to eliminate

completely the sources of pollution. Nevertheless, to safeguard the workers health

and well-being and to improve their quality of life, steps should be taken to control

industrial pollution, devise pragmatic effluent quality standard, introduce effective

waste recycling, treatment and disposal systems, modernize manufacturing pro-

cesses and minimize the use of toxic raw materials, improve working and living

conditions, prohibit smoking inside the industry, restrict overtime work and in-

crease health care facilities.

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