Returning to the "Homeland": Work-related ethnic discrimination and the health of Japanese Brazilians in Japan

Objectives. We investigated whether self-reported ethnic discrimination in the workplace was associated with well-being among Japanese Brazilians who had returned to Japan. Further, we examined interactions between discrimination and education on well-being. Methods. We obtained data from a cross-sectional survey of Japanese Brazilian workers (n = 313) conducted in 2000 and 2001. Outcomes were self-rated health, psychological symptoms as measured by the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) score, and a checklist of somatic symptoms. Results. Reports of ethnic discrimination were associated with increased risk of poor self-rated health and psychological symptoms (GHQ-12 score), after we controlled for self-assessed workload, supportive relations at work, physically dangerous working conditions, workplace environmental hazards, shift work, number of working hours, age, gender, marital status, income, education, Japanese lineage, length of residence, and Japanese language proficiency. Further, the relationship between discrimination and self-rated health and somatic symptoms was most robust for those with the least education. Conclusions. Ethnic discrimination appears to be a correlate of morbidity among Japanese Brazilian migrants. Future research should investigate how educational and workplace interventions may reduce discrimination and possibly improve health.