Mauri Tangata: LongTerm Health Effects of Unemployment

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Mauri Tangata Long-Term Health Effects of
Unemployment

• Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated
• and
• Te Roopu Rangahau Hauora a Eru Pomare,
• University of Otago, Wellington.
• Funded by the HRC
• Hui Whakapiripiri
• Waipuna Hotel, Auckland
• 26th-27th March 2009

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Vera Keefe-Ormsby (1952-2005)
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Background

• Govt. de-regulated Meat Industry (1981), reduced
  subsidies to farmers gt decrease in Sheep
  numbers.
• Large meatwork closures throughout the 1980s.
• In 1992 the NZ Unemployment rate peaked at 11.1,
  Maori rate peaked at 27.4.
• Economic Recession

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What were the long-term health effects of being
made redundant in the mid-80s and the mid-90s?

• 1990s
• Tomoana closed 1994
• No redundancy
• No notice of closure
• Unemployment high
• Voluntary Unionism
• 1991 Benefit cuts
• Market rentals
• Tomoana Resource Centre

• 1980s
• Whakatu closed 1986
• Stronger Unions
• Redundancy payouts
• Workers had collective investments

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Study Design

• Factory closure study
• Exposure Redundant
• Outcomes (Health) Deaths
• Hospitalisations
• Cancer Registrations
• 2 cohorts
• - 1986 Whakatu (study) and Tomoana (control)
• 1986 ?1994
• - 1994 Tomoana (study) and Takapau, Oringi,
  Wairoa, Pacific (control)
• 1994 ?2005

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Methods

• Matched the Works Personnel records to the MOH
  National Health Index numbers (n 5,500).
• Matching was made harder due to different names
  and DOBs.
• Follow-up through electoral roll, MOH database,
  re-unions, friends and whanau networks.
• Australian Death Register (AIHW).
• Proportional hazards modelling of health outcomes

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Cohort Descriptions (1986-1994)
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Cohort Descriptions (1994-2005)
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Mortality
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Hospitalisations
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Key Findings

• Suicide
• 2 times higher risk among 1986 redundant group
• 6 times higher risk among 1994 redundant group
• Other findings
• Self-harm hospitalisations raised for 1986 cohort
  but not 1994 cohort
• Stroke hospitalisations raised for 1994 cohort
  but not 1986 cohort. Mortality risk not higher.
• No other statistically significant differences in
  either time period.

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Strengths

• Large cohort numbers (n 5,500)
• Similar control groups
• High follow-up rates (97 and 99)
• Long follow-up periods (8 years and 11 years)
• 2 time periods
• Australian deaths retrieved

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Limitations

• Re-employed?
• Multiple redundancies
• Serious health events only
• Generalisability
• seasonal work,
• control group work conditions decreased?

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LEED study of firm closures

• Compared to controls, 4 years after full closure
• employment 12 lower
• earnings 16 lower
• Employees most affected
• full closures more than partial or restructured
• small-medium size businesses (lt50 employees)
• longer job tenure
• younger (25-34 yrs)
• Note study conducted during strong employment
  growth
• Source Dixon and Stillman 2008 The Impact of
  Firm Closures on Workers Future Employment and
  Earnings. (Stats NZ and Motu)

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Human Stories

• We werent getting an income for seven months
  because he didnt want to go on the dole.
• Many of the workers were in financial strife
  with the stand-down period and no redundancy.
• After Whakatu he got a job at another works.
  Hed come home so tired he didnt have time for
  the kids.
• The longer they stayed at home the more
  depressed they got and it was quite sad really.
• As time went by they started getting into their
  Maori culture and whaikorero.

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When closures occur

• Fund support service
• Provide in-home visits
• Develop policies thatincrease workers voicein
  decisions affectingwork environment
• Provide warning, notice
• Support retraining programmes
• Develop community response
• Vera Keefe-Ormsby. Tihei Mauri Ora The Human
  Stories of Whakatu

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Research Implications

• Effect on other types of workforce?
• Archive personnel records when closures happen
• Match LEED to health records
• Examine intergenerational impacts
• How does racism intersect with labour and social
  policy to impact health?
• How does stigma affect health impact of
  unemployment?
• What types of community organising and alliance
  building are necessary to protect communities?
• What changes to economic, labour, and welfare
  policies and laws are needed to protect
  communities
• How can whanau, hapu, iwi organise to protect
  health?

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Policy implications

• Destigmatise unemployment
• Dismantle policies discriminatory benefit
  policies
• Consider structural responses to suicide
  prevention
• Protect workers rights and working conditions
• Include health impact in cost of job losses
• Promote job creation in regions most affected
• Advocate for the right to health for all
• Work for equity in the distribution of resources
  and power that shape health outcomes

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Acknowledgements

• The former and present freezing workers and their
  whanau
• Former management from Weddel Tomoana and Hawkes
  Bay Farmers Meat Company
• Management and workers from Wairoa, Takapau,
  Pacific, and Oringi Freezing works
• As well as the following people for their
  valuable help Rex Adsett, Helen Barlow, Jane
  Ferrie, Hayden Greville, Ina Harris, Gaye
  Hollyman, Zack and Georgina Makoare, Roger
  Middlemass, Kathy Mihaere, Eric Mischefski, Clint
  Ormsby, Wayne Thompson, Gary John Williams.
• Go to http//www.kahungunu.iwi.nz, for an online
  copy of our community booklet Mauri Mahi Does
  being made unemployed affect health? The closures
  of Whakatu and Tomoana.
• Go to http//www.hauora.maori.nz, for an online
  copy of the upcoming community booklet (May
  2009).
• Further contact details Jordan.waiti_at_otago.ac.nz,
  [phone].
• Research team Gordon Purdie, Jordan Waiti,
  Bridget Robson, Ngahiwi Tomoana

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For further information

• Go to http//www.kahungunu.iwi.nz, for an online
  copy of the first study community report Mauri
  Mahi Does being made unemployed affect health?
  The closures of Whakatu and Tomoana.
• Coming soon to http//www.hauora.maori.nz, for an
  online copy of the upcoming community report (May
  2009).
• Further contact details Jordan.waiti_at_otago.ac.nz,
  [phone] or bridget.robson_at_otago.ac.nz
• Current Research team Gordon Purdie, Jordan
  Waiti, Bridget Robson, Ngahiwi Tomoana

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Layoffs are part of any market economy. But its
widely accepted as a fact that involuntary job
dislocations are on the rise, the unfortunate
residual of a technology-driven,
productivity-surging, outsource-crazed
economy.Wirtz 20053. The Region, 19,3.
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NZ Unemployment rate (1986-2008)Blue Maori
Red Total all Ethnic groupsNZ Household labour
Force Survey (Statistics NZ)