The Lived Experiences of Construction Workers during COVID-19 Pandemic: In Suburban Case
South Asian Journal of Social Studies and Economics,
Page 98-103
DOI:
10.9734/sajsse/2020/v8i430222
Abstract
The lived experiences of construction workers are explored in this study. The twelve construction workers were interviewed face-to-face to solicit their struggles and sufferings during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data gathered from the respondents were analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. In the analysis, the major themes identified were Knowledge of COVID-19, Initial Reaction, Financial Assistance Received, Life during Work Suspension and Challenges experienced as Construction Workers. Fear of infection and worry for their family were the initial reactions of all the respondents upon hearing of this CoVID-19 virus. For them to cope with the crisis during the work suspension period they resorted to an alternative way of livelihoods like went to farming, copra selling, rice harvesting, and 'habal habal' driver. Homesick is also one of the challenges being experienced by a construction worker for he cannot go home because of travel restrictions.
Keywords:
- Construction workers
- COVID-19 pandemic
- lived experiences.
How to Cite
References
Cortes, Guido Matias, Eliza C. Forsythe. The heterogeneous labor market impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. Upjohn Institute Working paper 20-327. Kalamazoo, MI: W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research; 2020. Available:https://doi.org/10.17848/wp20-32
Al’sanah R, Ziadah R. Palestinian workers are bearing the brunt of the pandemic; 2020. Available:https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/05/israel-palestinian-workers-pandemic
Bsisu KA-D. The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Jordanian civil engineers and construction industry. International Journal of Engineering Research and Technology. 2020;13(5):828-830. ISSN: 0974-3154.
Andersen AL, Jensen Hansen ET, Johannesen NS, Sheridan A. Pandemic, shutdown and consumer spending: Lessons from Scandinavian policy responses to COVID-19. Working paper; 2020.
Lancet Migration. Leaving no one behind in the covid-19 pandemic: A call for urgent global action to include migrants in the Covid- 19 response. Lancet, 6736; 2020.
Bui TTM, Button P, Picciotti EG. Early evidence on the impact of Covid-19 and the recession on older workers. NBER Working Paper No. 27448. JEL No. I14,J14,J16,J26; 2020.
Pasco R, Du Z, Wang X, Petty M, Fox SJ, Meyers LA. COVID-19 in Austin, Texas: epidemiological assessment of construction work; 2020. Available:https://cid.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/cid/files/covid-19_austin_ construction_workforce-meyers_ut-040520.pdf?m=1586183590
Lester S. An introduction to phenomenological research. Taunton UK, Stan Lester Developments; 1999. Available:www.sld.demon.co.uk/resmethy
Yüksel P, Yıldırım S. Theoretical frameworks, methods, and procedures for conducting phenomenological studies in educational settings. Turkish Online Journal of Qualitative Inquiry. 2015;6(1).
Pasco RF, Fox SF, Claiborne Johnson SC, Pignone M, Meyers LA. Estimated association of construction work with risks of COVID-19 infection and hospitalization in Texas. JAMA Network Open. 2020; 3(10):e2026373. DOI:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.26373
-
Abstract View: 3539 times
PDF Download: 2310 times
