New Findings from the WorkerHealth Project

Three new publications have just been released with the first results from the WorkerHealth project, the most comprehensive intervention to date for improving the health of factory workers in Cambodia. Structured as a partnership between the Evidence Project/Population Council and SIFPO/Marie Stopes International, the WorkerHealth Project is revolutionizing the way that worker health is framed and addressed in Cambodia through a rigorous, multi-pronged research and service delivery intervention. WorkerHealth is the first intervention to incorporate reproductive health and family planning as key components of factory workers’ health, and will generate learning from an unprecedented number of workers and range of stakeholders.

These publications present a critical perspective on the health needs of factory workers, including personal insights from workers and factory managers, and a comprehensive analysis of worker health interventions to date and the current stakeholder landscape. The garment sector is a pillar of the Cambodian economy and most garment factory workers are women, making worker’s reproductive health needs an issue of national importance. Indeed, female garment factory workers and factory managers alike named reproductive health as a priority health issue for factory workers. However, family planning and reproductive health have not been adequately described or addressed in worker health-focused interventions.

The results from these foundational studies expand the current understanding of the health needs of female garment factory workers and lay the groundwork for new approaches to improving worker health. This includes recommendations for improving the health of workers through efficient and innovative financing, advocacy, and service delivery strategies that complement and capitalize on existing partnerships, mechanisms, and initiatives.

To read the full reports, click on the images below.