In this unit we are going to speak about ergonomics.

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2 In this unit we are going to speak about ergonomics. Ergonomics, also known as comfort design or functional design, is the practice of designing products, systems, or processes to take proper account of the interaction between them and the people who use them. It is part of what are known as human factors in the workplace. In computer related work, ergonomics deals with the design of the human-machine interface and addresses how the user sits, the positioning of the chair and the different peripherals of the computer (the monitor, the keyboard and the mouse) in relationship with the user. The purpose of ergonomics is to achieve user comfort and to safeguard user health and safety, preventing repetitive strain injuries and other musculoskeletal disorders which can develop over time and can lead to long-term disability. This avoids problems and maximizes productivity and efficiency. 2

3 Sitting in front of a computer for hours is not a natural activity for human beings, and in the long term can be very harmful if precautions are not taken to avoid bad posture and eye strain. In the US, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has documented that Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders are the single largest job-related injury and illness problems. These problems generate absences due to work-related injuries that translate into lost productivity and organizational disruptions. This, of course, affects the performance of companies. 3

4 To avoid problems related to computer use you have to adopt the correct posture, have breaks while you work in which you change your position for a short while and stretch your muscles. The main potential problems are back and neck ache, wrist and hand problems and eye strain. To avoid them we should: Locate the upper part of the screen a little over the height of our eyes in a way that we look at it without tilting our head. Sit straight in a chair with lumbar support and at a height that lets us work with our arms making a 90º angle Locate the keyboard and mouse at a distance that lets us work with straight wrists and without moving our arms forward. If necessary use wrist pads. This can prevent carpal tunnel syndrome (that is, the pinching of the nerve that runs from the hand to the forearm and results in pain and numbness in the wrist and arm) and similar problems Have armrests on the chair to support our arms Have our legs at 90º with our feet on the floor. People can use a footrest if necessary Work in a well-lit place without glare on the monitor screen (to avoid blurred vision and headaches) Take 3 to 5 minutes breaks every 60 to 90 minutes of work. Avoid sitting at your desk for prolonged periods of time. During the breaks stretch your neck and back, walk a little bit, flex your fingers and alternate looking far away and near to relax your eyes. 4

5 Ergonomics is part of what should be taken into account in job design. Job design (also referred to as work design or task design) is the specification of contents, methods and relationship of jobs in order to satisfy technological and organizational requirements as well as the social and personal requirements of the job holder, including health and safety aspects. The aim of job design is to improve job satisfaction giving the employee a sense of achievement and increased self-esteem, and in this way improving output and quality and reducing problems. Job design starts by studying all the tasks a job encompasses and includes working hours, work breaks, job responsibilities, job relationships, job evaluation criteria, the criteria for future raises and promotions, initial training period and new employee welcome plan, in-job training, retirement, pension plans and health related benefits, among others For a job to be motivating several dimensions have to be considered: skill variety (the more required skills the better), task identity (as employees involved in an activity from start to finish are usually more satisfied), task significance (as jobs are more satisfying if people believe that they make a difference), autonomy (the more autonomy the better) and feedback (as the more people are told about their performance, the more interested they will be in doing a good job) Some techniques used in job design are: Job rotation in which an employee changes positions in the company, job enlargement where job duties are expanded to avoid boredom and alienation, job enrichment that increases the employees autonomy over the planning and execution of their own work, scientific management of jobs and motivational work design. 5

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