Stress and work-related accidents among food delivery riders in Chiang Mai, Thailand

Background: The number of food delivery motorbike riders has increased with the growth of the food delivery industry amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The nature of this job may have an impact on riders’ stress, increasing the risk of road accidents. The purpose of this paper is to investigate stress- and work-related accidents among food delivery motorbike riders in Chiang Mai as well as the factors associated with road accidents during delivery. Method: We used a self-administered questionnaire in a cross-sectional study between November 2021 and March 2022. A total of 253 food delivery riders in Chiang Mai were recruited for the study using convenience sampling. The data was analyzed using multiple logistic regression. Results: The study revealed that the majority of the subjects had a moderate level of stress (39.9%). In addition, 50 food delivery riders (19.8%) had experienced motorcycle accidents while delivering food in the previous year. Most of them (86.0%) involved minor untreated injuries. Factors associated with motorcycle accidents while delivering food were working more than 8 hours per day (Odds ratio = 2.09, 95%CI = 1.04 - 4.18) and a severely high level of stress (Odds ratio = 6.14, 95%CI = 1.70 - 22.18). Conclusion: The findings could be useful for relevant agencies and organizations in considering safety at work, such as having appropriate working hours and stress prevention to reduce the risk of motorcycle accidents among food delivery riders. Keywords: Stress, Motorcycle accidents, Food delivery riders, Thailand