Occupational health and safety related knowledge, attitude and practice among metal workers of Bogura city

Compliance with the occupational health and safety (OHS) measures at workplace is an important step towards providing a healthier welding workplace especially in developing countries like Bangladesh where such measures are commonly not well-considered. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of occupational health and safety among metal workers. We conducted a cross-sectional study among the 424 metal workers who were working in the different wards of Bogura city, Bangladesh. Data was collected through face-to-face interviews using a standard structured questionnaire which included demographic characteristics, and questions specifically designed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of the study subjects. Knowledge and attitude were measured using composite scores and data were analyzed using SPSS. About 71% of the respondents had good knowledge about occupational health and safety, 61.6% of the respondents had a favorable attitude and 72.6% of the respondents had good practice about occupational health and safety. Most of the  workers (53.5%) were 22-27 years old and 42.9% completed primary school. Regarding their work environment, 90.3% reported the presence of excessive dust, 85.1% reported disturbingly high sound and 50.2% reported radiation from welding. Only 32.55% knew that exposure to chemicals (inhaled sprays, spilled on body, etc.) during work causes a problem on health. Only 17.5% and 29.7% of the respondents reported that they had training on OHS before they started work and within the last one year, respectively. The overall knowledge, attitude, and practice related to OHS and metal workers in Bogura pose a public health concern. This calls for urgent intervention in providing on-the-job training as well as implementing a safer work environment, medical checkups, and improved pre-service training for new staff.