Occupational hazards associated with frozen fish marketing in Abeokuta metropolis in Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study assessed the occupational hazards and injuries associated with frozen fish marketers in Abeokuta metropolis, Ogun State of Nigeria. A two-stage sampling procedure was adopted in sampling 150 fish marketers from 10 popular markets within the study area. Data were elicited with the aid of an interview schedule and analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency distribution, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) analytical tools. Results obtained showed that the mean age of the fish marketers was 37.96±11.04 years, the majority were females (87.9%), married (83.2%), and had a mean household size of 9.00±4.00 persons. Also, 54.4% and 42.3% of the fish marketers had secondary and tertiary education, respectively. In terms of safety measures adopted, all the fish marketers used pain relievers after work, while higher proportions usually use hand gloves (76.5%), wear nose masks (86.6%), wear an apron (80.5%), use plaster in cases of cuts (53.7%) and do regular medical check-up (49.7%). Most (60.4%) of the fish marketers were found to be in good/safe working conditions, while more than half (53.0%) of them were exposed to a high level of hazard. A significant negative relationship existed between working conditions and the level of hazard experienced by the fish marketers (r = –0.721, p ≤ 0.01). It was concluded that occupational hazards are associated with frozen fish marketing. The study recommended that fish marketers should operate from shops to avoid dirty, dusty, and noisy environments to improve their working conditions.