Mixed Messages and COVID-19 Prevention: Why Information Is Not Always Enough to Protect Meat Processing Workers
Jacqueline M. Sivén, PhD, MA, MPH,
Julia F. Coburn, MA,
Tristan P. Call, PhD,
Dillon Mahoney, PhD,
Rebeca Rodríguez Flores, BA,
Harpriya Kaur, PhD, MPH,
Michael A. Flynn, MA,
Cammie K. Chaumont Menéndez, PhD, MPH, MS
Affiliations
Jacqueline M. Sivén, PhD, MA, MPH
Division of Science Integration, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cincinnati, Ohio; Address correspondence to: Jacqueline M. Sivén, PhD, MA, MPH, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1090 Tusculum Avenue, MS C-10, Cincinnati OH 45226.
Julia F. Coburn, MA
Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc., Mexico City, Mexico
Tristan P. Call, PhD
Bedford County Listening Project, Shelbyville, Tennessee
Dillon Mahoney, PhD
Department of Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida
Rebeca Rodríguez Flores, BA
Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc., Oaxaca, Mexico
Harpriya Kaur, PhD, MPH
Division of Science Integration, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cincinnati, Ohio
Michael A. Flynn, MA
Division of Science Integration, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cincinnati, Ohio
Cammie K. Chaumont Menéndez, PhD, MPH, MS
Division of Safety Research, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morgantown, West Virginia
Introduction: The objective of this project was to investigate U.S. meat and poultry processing workers’ knowledge of COVID-19; their perceived ability to protect themselves from infection; and perspectives on COVID-19 vaccines to inform COVID-19 prevention efforts within this linguistically, racially, and ethnically diverse workforce. Methods: Qualitative semistructured in-depth interviews were conducted with Mexican, Central American, Congolese refugee, and Black or African American meat/poultry processing workers from Mississippi, Minnesota, Virginia, and Kentucky (N=40). Data were collected from December 5, 2020 to January 28, 2021. Interview audio was transcribed, and rapid qualitative data analysis was used to analyze transcripts. Results: Most participants expressed receiving mixed messages about COVID-19 protection measures: they were told how to protect themselves (n=38), but workplace policies (such as lack of paid sick leave) often undermined their efforts. Participants who were asked about COVID-19 vaccines (n=31) were aware that there were 1 or more vaccines available to protect them from COVID-19; one third were eager to get vaccinated. Conclusions: Community-based efforts may consider supplementing large-scale unified information campaigns to prevent mixed messages, address worker needs to accurately gauge the threat of illness to their communities, and empower them to prevent infection.
