Issues Affecting Nail Salon Workers
Toxic and Unsafe Workplaces
The Collaborative emerged in direct response to an increasing concern of nail salon workers who exhibited serious health issues such as chronic asthma, skin rashes, and reproductive health issues.
Research on nail salon products revealed a widespread yet overlooked epidemic: manicurists working up to 70 hours per week were being exposed to toxic chemicals found in nail products they used to pamper clients on a daily basis.
In California, 69% of over 400,000 licensed manicurists and cosmetologists are Vietnamese, and most of them are low-income women workers of reproductive age.
Manicurists that are pregnant or want to become pregnant are at a greater risk for complications such as gestational diabetes or miscarriages.
Nail salon workers also report work-related ergonomic body pain and lower back problems.
A Brief Overview of Health and Safety Issues in the Nail Salons (Nail Files: A Study of Nail Salon Workers and Industry in the United States 2018)
Current Issues for Nail Salon Workers (Nail Files: A Study of Nail Salon Workers and Industry in the United States 2018)
Unjust working conditions
In addition to toxic chemical exposure, nail salon workers experience wage theft and labor violations.
Manicurists are low wage workers and are mostly misclassified as independent contractors instead of employees which denies them access to sick time, overtime, workers compensation, breaks, and other benefits.