Assessment of life's quality of recyclable material collectors in the main municipalities of Paraíba

Abstract

This work aims to evaluate the quality of life of recyclable material collectors in the main municipalities of Paraíba (João Pessoa, Campina Grande and Patos). A questionnaire validated in the literature (WHOQOL-adapted), a semi-structured interview and monitoring of the professional practice of collectors were applied, obtaining qualitative and quantitative data. Data collection was carried out from September 2020 to April 2021, with a sample of 81 participants, divided into eight associations and cooperatives in the cities under study. In the statistical analysis we used the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.0 and the Shapiro-Wilk test to verify the normality of the data, being used the nonparametric Kruskal Wallis. In the results found, it is observed that the groups of recyclable material collectors present a different assessment of their quality of life (p= 0,0032), health (p=0,0032), enjoy life (p=0,0088), safety in daily life (p=0,0022), safety at work (p=0,0004), income (p=0,0019) and means of transport (p=0,0032). It is observed that most collectors are female, are in their fourth decade of life, have their own home, marital status (single) and education level (primary education I). Therefore, recyclable material collectors assess their quality of life as good, regardless of the difficulties they face and unhealthy working conditions. In this study, it was observed that the quality of life indicators of recyclable material collectors were: money, employment, study, leisure, housing, health, safety and job satisfaction. The identification of these indicators is essential for the formulation of public policies that help municipal managers in the construction of projects and laws for the improvement of solid waste management.