International Students and work-hazard exposure: Are we managing their risks?

Recent changes in Canada and Australia allow international students to increase the hours they work outside their studies. 

Previously, international students in Canada were permitted to work only 20 hours per week outside their school programs; that limit has been temporarily removed until December 31, 2023.  Australia moved earlier and lifted a similar cap until June 30, 2023.  In the US, an on-campus 20-hour restriction exists during sessions with additional hours during breaks and specific exceptions for certain groups and circumstances. Demand for workers means more students working more hours in more sectors in the economy.

Clearly, the easing of restrictions on work hours is intended to alleviate labour shortages, particularly in the service sector.  That said, many students work in many other sectors of the economy.  In my own experience, I have met international students working in construction, manufacturing, transportation, warehousing, and healthcare.

Increased Hours = Increased Risk

With unlimited hours on top of studies and on-campus work (often part of their studies), international students are exposed to more hazards.  Recall that risk is the chance or probability of harm from a work-related hazard.  That increased risk is greater than you might expect.

First, the risk of injury and occupational disease is related to exposure.  For most jobs, one can think of exposure in terms of hours exposed to the hazards present in the workplace.  Increased hours alone account for increased risk in the population of international students who engage in employment.  Holding the number of international students constant and increasing their exposure to work hazards through increased hours, increases the likelihood of occupational injury and disease.

Fatigue and Risk

A second factor can increase the risk beyond a straight linear relationship.  The fatigue – risk relationship is an accepted fact.  NIOSH-CDD writes:

Fatigue can slow down reaction times. Reduce attention or concentration, limit short-term memory and impair judgement…High levels of fatigue can affect any worker in any occupation or industry with serious consequences for worker safety and health. 

[See https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/fatigue/default.html ]

Published studies rarely focus on non-work sources of fatigue outside of commuting time and breaks between shifts.  Study time, family needs and other factors can add to fatigue and increase risk.  Some industries have modeled hazards and fatigue related risks [for example, see Transport Canada, Fatigue Risk Management System for the Canadian Aviation Industry - Introduction to Fatigue Audit Tools - TP 14577 available at https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/publications/fatigue-risk-management-system-canadian-aviation-industry-introduction-fatigue-audit-tools-tp-14577 ]

Models and studies of enhanced risk facing resident and foreign students are lacking but the implication of existing knowledge is that the added hours of exposure to potential harms may disproportionately increase risk of injury or disease.

International Student Population

The population of foreign students is not trivial. Australia, Canada, and the US are three of the top five destination countries for foreign international students, accounting for more than 2 million of the estimated 5.6 million international students world wide. 

Rank	Country	International student population (2020)
1	USA	1,075,496
2	UK	551,495
3	Canada	503,270
4	China	492,185
5	Australia	463,643
		3,086,089

 

[see https://studee.com/guides/10-most-popular-countries-for-international-students/ ]

These are significant numbers.  Policy changes expanding hours increase the potential labour supply of this population’s in terms of allowed work opportunities may be needed to address demand for labour in the economy.  Current labour market shortages are evident in many jurisdictions.  Along with inflation, rental housing shortages and increased costs for transportation and study materials (particularly technology), international students may have a greater motivation to take advantage of greater opportunities for employment. 

Stock, Flow and Foreign Student Population Measures

International students pose a challenge for those charged with designing health, safety and workers’ compensation awareness programs for them.  At any given time, the population of international students can vary.  Most courses of study span a calendar year or more.  Study visas may be valid for or across multiple years, but students may enter and leave the jurisdiction as part of their studies or simply to return home for part of any given year. This is the “flow” of international students.

Unlike refugees and new immigrants (definitionally,  permanent or extended-stay residents including asylum seekers) or temporary foreign workers (individuals contracted for periods of greater than a year or returning on a seasonal basis), foreign students are generally in the jurisdiction for shorter periods (not permanently).  At any given time, the population or “stock” of foreign students may exceed the “flow” or count of new arrivals. 

Once a cohort of new immigrants or temporary foreign workers is oriented to health and safety or workers’ compensation in the jurisdiction, they are often considered part of the resident population in terms of knowledge and awareness programs.  With foreign students, the “stock” is ever changing and the challenge of raising awareness, building trust, and informing them of their rights and obligations never wains.

Experience and expectations

Workplace culture is not universal.  Attitudes and beliefs regarding workplace health and safety vary widely.  Experiences and understandings about workplace health and safety and workers’ compensation also vary by country.  It is not reasonable to assume all international students bring the same understanding to the workplace.

Consider the following: 

Canada's top 10 international student source countries (by number of study permit holders on Dec. 31, 2021)
India	217,410
China	105,265
France	26,630
Iran	16,900
Vietnam	16,285
South Korea	15,805
Philippines	15,545
United States	14,325
Nigeria	13,745
Mexico	11,550

[ See https://www.cicnews.com/2022/03/canada-welcomed-450000-new-international-students-in-2021-an-all-time-record-0323762.html#gs.fl1tae ]

 

 

US: Number of international students studying in the US in 2020/21, by country of origin
China	317,299
India	167,582
South Korea	39,491
Canada	25,143
Saudi Arabia	21,933
Vietnam	21,631
Taiwan	19,673
Brazil	14,000
Mexico	12,986
Nigeria	12,860

https://www.statista.com/statistics/233880/international-students-in-the-us-by-country-of-origin/

Australia: Number of international students studying Australian courses January-July 2022
China	141,567
India	86,782
Nepal	51,579
Vietnam	19,932
Indonesia	14,865
Malaysia	14,135
Thailand	14,015
Brazil	13,963
Philippines	13,703
Colombia	13,661

 [ See https://www.education.gov.au/international-education-data-and-research/international-student-numbers-country-state-and-territory ]

With the possible exception of international students from Canada, the US and Australia studying away from home in one of the other countries in this grouping, foreign students will have no prior understanding of the jurisdictional authorities responsible for workplace health, safety and workers’ compensation. I could find no study contrasting the a priori understanding of international students regarding workplace laws, duties, and responsibilities.  While resident citizens will have some understanding from their indirect exposure through media, family, and community, it is unlikely that all foreign international students will bring an equivalent common understanding with them.

International students should not be “lumped in” with strategies designed for other temporary foreign workers.  Most temporary foreign workers are required by their visas to work for specific employers; international students may be employed in multiple sectors by multiple employers and may change employers frequently. This adds a further challenge for those seeking to increase protections for and gain the trust of international students and those who employ them. 

Are workers’ comp and OH&S adapting

Workers’ compensation agencies and prevention organizations are not always quick to react to changes in the demographics of their target populations.  International students are a special demographic segment of their target population. 

As noted, Canada, the US and Australia differ from other countries in who has jurisdiction over workplace health, safety and workers’ compensation laws.  Most countries in the world that have social security arrangements for work injuries have national programs.  While efforts to increase the knowledge of residents on workers’ compensation and occupational health and safety  through advertising and inclusion in high school curricula in Canada, the US and Australia; similar awareness programs and educational curricula may not exist in the home countries of many international students.  Failure to adequately inform international students may lead to their injury, potential under-reporting of hazards, and suppression of workplace rights. 

So, what are authorities responsible for workplace health, safety and compensation doing to address this change?  How are they working to communicate worker rights to this unique population, helping their employers understand risks, and making others in the workplaces more aware to foreign student issues?

To be clear, this is not just a question of language.  Nearly all international students are required to have official language proficiency just to qualify for admission as students.  Understanding, trust, access, and support go beyond translating brochures and webpages.  If you can find a workers’ compensation authority or OH&S doing a great job gaining the trust of foreign students, let me know.  I could find no public-facing statements or studies on this issue.  Foreign students need to know that their status and right to work are not at risk by engaging with health and safety agencies or filing a workers’ compensation claim.

I also found little in the way of data on the risk differences (if any) faced by international students.  Do they experience similar levels of injury or risk as resident workers remains an unanswered question.  Few workers’ compensation jurisdictions identify international students in their data –a necessary categorization if we are to determine work-injury risk, claims rates, or establish the likelihood of under-reporting of workplace injury in this population.

Taking action to help protect international students and serve them requires action by workers’ compensation and prevention authorities.  These actions include:

•       Collecting data on international student injuries

•       Interacting with specific international student groups

•       Determining where international students are working and being injured

•       Educating international students and their employers on their rights and building trust

•       Actively seeking to minimize under-reporting of workplace injury, illness and disease involving international students

•       Comparative research on risk, frequency, severity, and outcomes of injured international students vs. resident student workers

Societally, we want and need international students more than every.  They can be a resource that will help level the gaps in our labour force and skill needs. Takin intentional and robust steps to understand and address their needs is more important now than at any point in the past.