Human-animal interactions, occupational health and well-being in pig slaughterhouses of Colombia: Exploring worker perceptions and practices

Abstract

Public concern about global health has forced the meat industry to make technological, operational and logistical improvements, but human-animal interactions are rarely considered from an animal welfare perspective. A total of 171 workers from 12 pig slaughterhouses were interviewed about their occupational perceptions and practices affecting their health and well-being, and human-pig interactions. Ninety percent of the workers interviewed were male, between 18 and 30 years old, with high school education, < 7 years of experience, and learned their work in the slaughterhouse. In terms of human-animal interactions, we found that the nature of the tasks performed by each worker had an impact on their perceptions of pigs, particularly those involving work with live animals (outdoors) and stunning and bleeding (indoors). In addition, respondents show disapproval of cruel practices and a high level of awareness of pig pain and concern to alleviate it. However, there are neutral responses to statements that show some weakness in their feelings towards pigs. Forty per cent of respondents reported having at least one of the health problems and had suffered occupational accidents. The most common types of accidents were falls, cuts and animal aggression. These accidents were related to incorrect movements, especially in the morning, by personnel > 40 years of age, with > 7 years of experience, and the upper and/or lower extremities were most affected. Our results indicate that fatigue caused by factors such as line speed, uncoordinated operations, and risky behavior by workers, is the main cause of workplace accidents in slaughterhouses. Based on this evidence, we conclude that adjustments of work break/rest intervals and improvements of working conditions are necessary to reduce fatigue, improve safety, and enhance work efficiency.