Table 1
Variables employed in the cost‑benefit and return on investment calculations.
| FIXED RSH‑S PROGRAM COSTS (ISA WIDE) | |
|---|---|
| Electrolyte beverage production | |
| Salaries for intervention staff | |
| Worker employment and training costs | |
| Worker equipment costs | |
| VARIABLE RSH‑S PROGRAM OUTCOMES COSTS* | COST SAVINGS DUE TO RSH‑S PROGRAM* |
| Cost of AKI treatment | Reduced need for AKI treatment |
| Cost of absenteeism (i.e., worker turnover) | Reduced absenteeism |
| Cost of productivity loss | Increased daily sugarcane cut |
[i] *Data specific to burned cane cutters only.
Table 2
Average number of burned cane cutters and total number of workers at ISA, and total working days for burned cane cutters.
| YEAR | TOTAL NUMBER OF BURNED CANE CUTTERS | TOTAL LABOR FORCE AT ISA | TOTAL NUMBER OF WORKING DAYS PER BURNED CANE CUTTER |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 498 | 3775 | 143 |
| 2018 | 227 | 3503 | 136 |
| 2019 | 180 | 2755 | 124 |
| 2020 | 180 | 2527 | 101 |
| 2021 | 169 | 3028 | 123 |
| 2022 | 154 | 2932 | 156 |
[i] The total number of burned cane cutters decreased throughout the observation period, while the total number of working days per burned cane cutter was relatively constant.
Table 3
Daily productivity for burned cane cutters from 2017 to 2022.
| YEAR | AVERAGE SUGARCANE CUT PER WORKER PER DAY (IN TONS) |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 5.7 |
| 2018 | 5.7 |
| 2019 | 5.6 |
| 2020 | 6.3 |
| 2021 | 5.9 |
| 2022 | 6.2 |
[i] Daily productivity increased throughout the observation period.
Table 4
Total workdays, missed workdays by reason, and total lost workdays for burned cane cutters.
| YEAR | TOTAL WORKDAYS | UNEXCUSED ABSENCE | COMMON ILLNESS | UNPAID TIME OFF | OCCUPATIONAL RISK | TOTAL LOST WORKDAYS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 71,214 | 8723 | 1339 | 2 | 150 | 10,214 |
| 2018 | 30,872 | 2732 | 1260 | 87 | 143 | 4282 |
| 2019 | 22,320 | 843 | 930 | 185 | 104 | 2062 |
| 2020 | 18,180 | 585 | 56 | 179 | 37 | 857 |
| 2021 | 20,787 | 524 | 151 | 145 | 42 | 862 |
| 2022 | 24,024 | 923 | 314 | 209 | 25 | 1471 |
[i] Total lost workdays generally decreased throughout the observation period.
Figure 1
Calculated production losses and cost savings due to enhanced productivity from 2017 to 2022 in burned cane cutters. Production losses decreased and cost savings increased after initial implementation of the RSH‑S program in Harvest 2 (2018–2019) and enhanced implementation in Harvest 3 (2019–2020).
Figure 2
Total number of acute kidney injury (AKI) cases in burned cane cutters (n), as a function of the number of burned cane cutters (%) and the associated cost savings due to reduced AKI incidence in burned cane cutters. The number of AKI cases decreased, and cost savings increased after initial implementation of the RSH‑S program in Harvest 2 (2018–2019) and enhanced implementation in Harvest 3 (2019–2020).
Table 5
Annual fixed costs for implementation of the rest–shade–hydration–sanitation intervention.
| YEAR | EQUIPMENT | TRAINING | OPERATIONS | ELECTROLYTE BEVERAGE PRODUCTION | TOTAL COSTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $28,927.92 | $4,530.19 | $43,098.72 | $215,217.23 | $291,774.05 |
| 2018 | $29,616.68 | $2,957.69 | $44,124.88 | $219,748.12 | $296,447.36 |
| 2019 | $29,961.06 | $2,302.08 | $44,637.96 | $224,279.01 | $301,180.11 |
| 2020 | $30,305.44 | $2,525.23 | $45,151.04 | $226,544.45 | $304,526.16 |
| 2021 | $32,027.34 | $2,487.67 | $47,716.44 | $237,871.67 | $320,103.12 |
| 2022 | $34,438.00 | $2,617.23 | $51,308.00 | $255,995.23 | $344,358.46 |
[i] The annual fixed costs were largely unchanged throughout the observation period.
Table 6
Annual cost savings following implementation of the rest–shade–hydration–sanitation intervention in 2017.
| YEAR | PRODUCTION SAVINGS | AKI TREATMENT SAVINGS | TOTAL SAVINGS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | — | — | — |
| 2018 | $24,027.35 | $171.82 | $24,199.17 |
| 2019 | $185,868.50 | $5,865.47 | $191,733.97 |
| 2020 | $335,070.43 | $9,726.91 | $344,797.34 |
| 2021 | $526,825.50 | $4,717.02 | $531,542.52 |
| 2022 | $543,823.21 | $4,613.98 | $548,437.19 |
[i] Total savings, a function of production savings and AKI treatment savings, increased throughout the observation period.
Figure 3
The value of the benefits and investments following the implementation of the rest–shade–hydration–sanitation program in 2018 (bottom) and quantification of the annual net return on investment (top). The costs of implementing the RSH‑S program were offset by savings two years after initial implementation in Harvest 2 (2018–2019) and yielded a positive return on investment three years after implementation (Harvest 4, 2020–2021), which was sustained through 2022, the last year in which data were available.