Dr. May et Ce. Schwoerer, EMPLOYEE HEALTH BY DESIGN - USING EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT TEAMS IN ERGONOMIC JOB REDESIGN, Personnel psychology, 47(4), 1994, pp. 861-876
An innovative, team-based, ergonomic job redesign effort in a large Mi
dwest organization is described. Joint management-labor teams composed
of representatives from each department of the plant were formed and
trained in team-building and ergonomic principles. These teams priorit
ized jobs for ergonomic redesign and developed and implemented solutio
ns. Sources of data for this redesign process included: a physical sym
ptom survey, OSHA logs for cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs), observa
tions, videotapes, and employee interviews about their jobs, tools, an
d pain experienced at work. Ergonomic changes at the plant resulted in
significant reductions in the number and severity of CTDs, lost produ
ction time, and restricted duty days. Recommendations based on experie
nces with this ergonomic intervention are made for HRM practitioners.