3 industries where ergonomics plays a key role in employee health
Ergonomics is very important in three specific industries to reduce physical strain and improve employee health.
Written by Mia Burns October 28, 2024
Pain and discomfort are inevitable in most occupations, especially those that involve physically demanding activities. Poor ergonomics exacerbates hazardous working conditions because the environment, systems, and equipment are not suitable for employees. Unnecessary tension has a variety of effects on the body, increasing fatigue, burnout, and vulnerability to injury.
Business leaders need to protect their employees from long-term sleep disorders, musculoskeletal disorders, and a variety of mental health issues. Promoting employee well-being is not only ethical, it also positively impacts the bottom line through increased productivity and reduced absenteeism. Check out these three industries that are showing the way by embracing ergonomics to minimize occupational hazards.
1. Agriculture
Farming is generally hard work. It doesn’t matter if you live in a developed or developing country. Working regularly on a farm or ranch pushes your body to its limits.
Korean female farmers aged over 60 years experience persistent musculoskeletal pain in their lower and upper extremities due to awkward and dangerous standing positions, repetitive motions, and lifting heavy materials with their hands. Thai vegetable, sugarcane and cassava farm workers live with sore knees and calf muscles. And many American and British food producers will confess similar ailments.
To make matters worse, young people are less keen to replace older farmers and are more interested in lower-labor, better-paying jobs. As a result, an aging workforce continues to work past retirement age.
Apart from industrial mechanization, agriculturalists have developed ergonomic tools to reduce the burden of manual labor. To reduce risk, engineers redesigned the device so that the index finger and thumb overlap by no more than 3/8 inch. Modern agricultural tools have been improved by using foam noodles in the handles to reduce fatigue from long-term use.
Rethinking the process has reduced the burden of lifting and bending. Lifting objects closer to my body between hand and shoulder height, reducing the weight of my pack, using stools, and using tools with adjustable handles has made a world of difference.
