Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2018 Nov;61(11):939-951.
doi: 10.1002/ajim.22907. Epub 2018 Sep 19.

Tobacco product use among workers in the construction industry, United States, 2014-2016

Girija Syamlal  1 , Brian A King  2 , Jacek M Mazurek  1
Affiliations

Tobacco product use among workers in the construction industry, United States, 2014-2016

Girija Syamlal et al. Am J Ind Med. 2018 Nov.

Abstract

Background: Although cigarette smoking has declined among U.S. workers, smoking remains high among construction workers. This study assessed tobacco product use among U.S. construction workers.

Methods: The 2014-2016 National Health Interview Survey data for U.S. working adults were analyzed.

Results: Of the 10.2 (6.3% of working adults) million construction workers, 35.1% used any tobacco product; 24.4% were cigarette smokers, 8.3% were cigar, cigarillo, pipe or hookah smokers, 7.8% were smokeless tobacco users, 4.4% were e-cigarette users, and 7.6% used ≥2 tobacco product users. Tobacco use varied by worker characteristics, with highest tobacco use (>35%) among those reporting ≤5 years on the job, temporary work status, job insecurity, or an unsafe workplace. Construction workers had higher odds of tobacco product use than non-construction workers.

Conclusions: Over one-third of U.S. construction workers use tobacco products and disparities exist across sub-groups. Workplace tobacco control strategies could reduce tobacco use among this population.

Keywords: construction workers; health status; industry; occupation; tobacco use.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

DISCLOSURE (AUTHORS)

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

DISCLOSURE BY AJIM EDITOR OF RECORD

Steven B. Markowitz declares that he has no competing or conflicts of interest in the review and publication decision regarding this article.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon General Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2014.
    1. Holford TR, Meza R, Warner KE, et al. Tobacco control and the reduction in smoking-related premature deaths in the United States, 1964–2012. JAMA 2014;311:164–171. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Ham DC, Przybeck T, Strickland JR, et al. Occupation and workplace policies predict smoking behaviors: analysis of national data from the current population survey. J Occup Environ Med 2011;53:1337–1345. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Farrelly MC, Evans WN, Sfekas AE. The impact of workplace smoking bans: results from a national survey. Tob Control 1999;8:272–277. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Institute of Medicine (U.S.) Committee on Smoking Cessation in Military and Veteran Populations. In: Bondurant S, Wedge R, eds. Combating Tobacco Use in Military and Veteran Populations Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2009:4 Tobacco-control programs: evidence-based practices. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK215335/ Accessed on February 2, 2018. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources