Gender response and safe carrying load limit for sugar industry workers

This study investigates the safe carrying load limit in relation to gender of workers in the sugar industry. A total of 632 workers (male and female) were interviewed following a physiological and psycho-physiological methodology. All of these workers were in the age groups of 21–30, 31–40 and ≥41 years. In this study, for the physiological methodology, both field and laboratory data were collected, which included heart rate, heart rate variability, energy expenditure and maximum rate of oxygen consumption. Information regarding hemoglobin content, weight, age, lean body weight, etc., was recorded to know the physical health of the workers. In the psycho-physiological evaluation, load-carrying limits were determined by the psychophysical rating of the load by workers from the selected age groups. By considering the physiological stresses and psycho-physiological evaluation, the safe carrying load limit was determined in head and back mode for male and female workers as per their age groups.     

Psychosocial and ergonomic survey of office and field jobs in a utility company

Introduction. The effect of different kinds of work on the psychosocial assessment of workers under the same management and organizational environment is investigated. Methods. A voluntary assessment in a utility company was carried out using the short version of the Copenhagen psychosocial questionnaire (CoPsoQ) on two occasions, 1.5 years apart. Initially, 25 office workers (11 men and 14 women) participated, while 14 of those workers (8 women and 6 men) participated in the second assessment together with 32 field workers. The sewage, water treatment and maintenance workers, totaling 32 men, also participated in a field ergonomics assessment using the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries field work ergonomic checklist. Results. The longitudinal outlook was fairly stable, with sustained severe scores in many CoPsoQ subscales and intensification of severity of workers’ control over work and esteem for men. A significantly higher esteem score resulted for field rather than office workers. Workers subjected to foul odors showed similar severity of psychosocial factors. Discussion. For most psychosocial dimensions, the organizational design and management system in place, as well as the overall cultural environment in which it operates, create a much stronger and more decisive impact than job-specific factors.     

Health impact and noise exposure assessment in the cricket bat industry of Kashmir,India

Aim. The aim of the present study was to identify and evaluate predominant noise sources in the cricket bat industry of Kashmir, India. Methods. Sound levels were measured at operator’s ear level in the working zone of the workers of seven cricket bat factories. The impact assessment was made through personal interviews with each worker separately during their period of rest. Results. On average, 62.5% of the workers reported difficulty in hearing and 24.1% of the workers have become patients for hypertension. Only 58.1% of the workers complained of headache due to high noise level. Conclusions. The workers engaged in the cricket bat industry of Kashmir are exposed to high noise levels. It is suggested that personal protective equipment like ear plugs and ear muffs be used by these workers as a protection against this hazard.     

Pedestrian falls: A review of the literature and future research directions

IntroductionPedestrian falls (PFs) – falls in public spaces without collisions with other road users – are a significant cause of serious transport-related injuries, amounting to three-quarters of all pedestrians admitted to hospital.MethodsThis scoping review examined peer-reviewed research on PFs published between 1995 and 2015. Electronic databases (Scopus, SafetyLit, and PubMed) were used to find studies identifying PFs or outdoor falls (the latter also including falls in gardens).ResultsWe identified only 28 studies reporting relevant information on PFs (i.e., 15 prospective, 10 retrospective, and 3 intervention studies). The results show that more walking is related to a lower risk of PFs. Older people, especially older women, have a higher risk of (injurious) PFs. Outdoor fall victims have equally good or better health characteristics and scores on balance tests compared to those who have not experienced such falls. Road factors such as uneven surfaces, busy junctions, stairs, and slippery surfaces seem to play an important role in PFs, but much of the research on these factors is of a qualitative nature.ConclusionsPF victims are generally in good health (apart from normal age-related problems) but at risk due to road factors.Practical applicationsWe recommend to adopt a human factors approach. The road system should be adapted to human capabilities and limitations including those of pedestrians. Measures such as preventing uneven surfaces and good winter maintenance seem to be effective. However, we advise more quantitative research on road factors to inform design guidelines and standards for public space authorities given the qualitative nature of current research on road factors.     

Occupational noise exposure and hearing defects among sawmill workers in the south of Thailand

The aim of this study was to investigate occupational noise exposure and hearing defects among sawmill workers in the south of Thailand. Seven hundred sawmill workers participated, of which 335 (47.9%) were male. The mean age of the sawmill workers was 33.5 years (SD 10.2), and more than 60% were <35 years old; 75.1% of the workers had less than 5 years of work experience. Only about one in four workers (25%) had been trained in use of personal protective equipment (PPE), and half of the participants never or rarely wore PPE while working. The prevalence rate of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) was 22.8% (N?=?42). Male workers had significantly higher risk than female workers (odds ratio [OR]?=?2.21). Workers aged older than 25 years had significantly higher risks for NIHL (OR?=?3.51–12.42) than workers younger than 25 years. Sawing workers had higher risk for NIHL than office workers (OR?=?3.07).     

Noise and neurotoxic chemical exposure relationship to workplace traumatic injuries: A review

IntroductionMore than 5,000 fatalities and eight million injuries occurred in the workplace in 2007 at a cost of $6 billion and $186 billion, respectively. Neurotoxic chemicals are known to affect central nervous system functions among workers, which include balance and hearing disorders. However, it is not known if there is an association between exposure to noise and solvents and acute injuries. Method: A thorough review was conducted of the literature on the relationship between noise or solvent exposures and hearing loss with various health outcomes. Results: The search resulted in 41 studies. Health outcomes included: hearing loss, workplace injuries, absence from work due to sickness, fatalities, hospital admissions due to workplace accidents, traffic accidents, hypertension, balance, slip, trips, or falls, cognitive measures, or disability retirement. Important covariates in these studies were age of employee, type of industry or occupation, or length of employment. Discussion: Most authors that evaluated noise exposure concluded that higher exposure to noise resulted in more of the chosen health effect but the relationship is not well understood. Studies that evaluated hearing loss found that hearing loss was related to occupational injury, disability retirement, or traffic accidents. Studies that assessed both noise exposure and hearing loss as risk factors for occupational injuries reported that hearing loss was related to occupational injuries as much or more than noise exposure. Evidence suggests that solvent exposure is likely to be related to accidents or other health consequences such balance disorders. Conclusions: Many authors reported that noise exposures and hearing loss, respectively, are likely to be related to occupational accidents. Practical applications: The potential significance of the study is that findings could be used by managers to reduce injuries and the costs associated with those injures.     

Determining the level and cost of sickness presenteeism among hospital staff in Turkey

Objective. This study aimed to determine the associations between sickness presenteeism and socio-demographic factors, perceived health status and health complaints among hospital staff and to calculate the cost burdens and productivity losses attributed to presenteeism. Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted using 951 hospital staff, including physicians, nurses, midwives, other health personnel and administrative staff working in two hospitals located in K?r?kkale province in Turkey. The health and work performance questionnaire developed by Kessler et al. was revised to measure sickness presenteeism. Results. After performing Student’s t test and a one-way analysis of variance, presenteeism was mostly observed in women, nurse-midwives, young employees, university health staff and health workers with low health status. Average productivity loss and cost of lost productivity per staff member were calculated as 19.92?h/TRY 315.57 for 2 weeks and 478.08?h/TRY 7573.68 for 1 year. Conclusions. The problem of sickness presenteeism is mostly observed in women and nurses. It causes both financial burdens and productivity losses for hospitals. These survey results are thus expected to provide critically important information on presenteeism for decision-makers and healthcare managers.     

Slips and falls on ice and snow in relation to experience in winter climate and winter sport

The objective of this paper was to investigate whether living experience in winter climate and winter sport helps to prevent slips and falls on ice and snow. A questionnaire survey was conducted among foreigners at Luleå University of Technology of Sweden, where winter season lasts for six months in a year. Seventy respondents replied. The results of ordinal regression showed that the slip frequency according to a 5-point rating scale decreased as the living experience in cold environments increased (B=−0.0113, p=0.019). A logistic regression was applied to model the probability of fall events occurrence based on the experience of living in cold climate. The results showed that the fall events reduced as living experience increased (B=−0.030, p=0.001). Chi-square test showed that fall events in those who took part in winter sport were significantly less than in those who did not participate in winter sport (χ²=10.745, p=0.001). The findings imply that experience of living in cold environments and training in gait balance on ice and snow can have positive effects in preventing slips and falls for inexperienced workers and pedestrians. This study also revealed that the majority of fall events happened on hard ice covered with snow while wearing ordinary winter footwear, indicating the need to improve slip resistance.     

I can't get no job satisfaction: Meta‐analysis comparing permanent and contingent workers

Scholars are concerned that contingent workers experience more adverse psychological job outcomes than permanent employees, but the empirical work on job satisfaction is mixed. The purpose of this study was to quantitatively summarize the potential mean differences in job satisfaction between contingent workers and permanent employees. Meta‐analytic results from 72 primary studies (N = 237 856) suggest that compared with permanent employees, contingent workers experience lower job satisfaction (d = ?0.21); but when outlying primary studies are removed, the mean difference is small but significant (d = ?0.06). Methodological artifacts explain small but significant differences in job satisfaction but do not account for much variance. Moderator analyses support previous findings that contingent workers are not a homogeneous group; some contingent workers (e.g., agency workers) experience lower job satisfaction than permanent employees, whereas the job satisfaction of other contingent workers (e.g., contractors) is similar to permanent employees. The findings have implications for increasing our understanding of job satisfaction by showing that job satisfaction appears to vary by employment type. Practical implications suggest that extending human resource practices to contingent workers may increase their job satisfaction, which has been shown to influence job performance, citizenship behaviors, and turnover. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

They don't want to be temporaries: similarities between temps and core workers

This study investigated the impact of employment status (temporary/regular) on the employee–organization relationship in samples from two firms employing both temps (n = 234) and regular or core (n = 204) workers. Temps and regular workers held similar beliefs regarding the nature of their employment relationship. However, among those temps for whom temporary work was their preferred status, the employment relationship was less socioemotional and more economic than was the case for other workers. When these temps preferred regular employment, their relationships were high socioemotional and low economic, comparable with that of core workers. A employee–organization relationship high on socioemotional terms was positively related to satisfaction with the organization, an attitude which in turn mediated the relationship between employment relationship and employees' performance and civic virtue behaviors (behaviors as assessed by their supervisors). Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

BLEVE: A new approach to the superheat limit temperature

Several methods proposed for calculating the value of the superheat limit temperature were analysed. The results obtained indicate that the procedures based on the thermodynamic stability approach introduce a significant uncertainty into the final values, depending on which equation of state is used. We propose a new approach based on the energy balance in the initial liquid mass just before the explosion. The temperature obtained using this method, T_sl−E, corresponds to the situation in which the energy transferred adiabatically between the cooling liquid and the vaporising liquid fractions is at its maximum. This leads to a minimum content of energy in the remaining liquid. Although these two approaches are equivalent—the procedures based on the thermodynamic stability approach use also the minimum energy state as a criterion—the new proposed method only uses the properties of the substance to obtain T_sl−E. Thus, T_sl−E represents the behaviour of each substance as a function of its molecular structure, while this influence is lost if a simple equation of state is used. Finally, some considerations are made on the limitations of the superheat limit temperature as a criterion for establishing whether an explosion is or is not a BLEVE.     

Validation of a questionnaire about the perception of occupational biohazard in Spanish companies

Objectives. The aim of this work was to develop, validate and test a new questionnaire to assess the biological risk in workers with intentional or unintentional exposure to biological agents. Methods. A questionnaire including 34 questions was developed to study the perception of workers against occupational biohazard. Content Validity Index (CVI) and Content Validity Ratio (CVR) were calculated for the analysis of content validity. A pilot study was carried out with 60 workers from 17 companies performing analysis of Cronbach's α to assess the internal consistency or reliability. Results. A total of 518 workers from 51 Spanish companies in which there is exposure to biological agents participated in the study yielding a response rate of 90%. The final questionnaire obtained a Cronbach's α > 0.759 with a stable test–retest result. The questionnaire validation demonstrates that it could be used to evaluate the biological risks and help the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases. Discussion. This study has validated the need to evaluate worker's perception against occupational risks, as well as the application of prevention methods and protective equipment. It is a first step towards developing an occupational biohazards assessment method including all the requirements set by the European Health and Safety Strategy 2013–2020.     

The effect of age on safety and work practices among domestic trash collectors in Québec

Aging is associated with physiological modifications which may affect work activities. Trash collectors' work at the back of garbage trucks is both solitary and strenuous, and it therefore appeared relevant to investigate the effects of aging in these workers. The working hypotheses were that older trash collectors work at different speeds and adopt different work practices than do younger ones, and that these differences affect the frequency and nature of accidents and mishaps in the two age groups. A multidisciplinary approach, incorporating statistics, ergonomics, and social sciences, was adopted. Workers at least 35 years old were compared to younger workers, using data from three sources: accident data (176 cases), observation of 17 trash collectors during 36 collection trips (more than 150 hours of observation), and semi-directed interviews of 11 trash collectors. Analysis indicated that older trash collectors: (1) adopt a slower work rhythm; (2) are helped more often by teammates; (3) are involved less frequently in mishaps; (4) declare themselves less fatigued and to have suffered fewer accidents; and (5) are proportionally more likely to be victims of slips, falls, and back injuries resulting from movements under load. There was no observed difference, however, between the work practices adopted by the two groups of workers or the length of work absences following accidents.     

Knowledge,attitudes and practices of occupational risks in Colombian taxi drivers

Objective. The objective of this study was to learn about the health and safety strategies in a sample of taxi drivers in Bucaramanga, Colombia. Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 138 taxi drivers. A survey was used to identify the socio-demographic and working characteristics, knowledge, attitudes and practices according to their occupational risk. Results. Eighty-five percent of the workers labored 9–15?h/day. Of those who suffered accidents, 27% were not affiliated to an occupational risk administrator (p = 0.028). Of the workers who had a work-related accident, 58% considered that the use of a cell phone while driving would not always reduce their attention, 50% always used their seat belt and 7% took active breaks and wore their seat belt (p = 0.01). Conclusions. Within this group of taxi drivers, having or believing to possess knowledge regarding an occupational risk did not ensure that they had a safe attitude or safe working practices.     

Effect of wearing hearing protectors on the audibility of railway warning signals – an experimental study

The effect of wearing hearing protectors on the audibility of warning signals has been evaluated for three specific railway-related jobs: track workers, train drivers and platform agents. Masked thresholds were measured in the laboratory, on railway agents with normal hearing, using warning signals and background noises typical of each job. Out of the 36 situations tested in total, statistical analyses showed that wearing earplugs improves the perception in 11 situations, deteriorates the perception in 10 situations and has no significant effect in 15 situations (as compared to no hearing protector). The deteriorations essentially concern signals which have no (or not enough) energy in the low-frequency range (ff相似文献   

Effects of physical exercise on musculoskeletal disorders,stress and quality of life in workers

Background. The effect of physical exercise in the workplace (PEW) on health promotion of workers is contradictory. Objective. To evaluate the effects of the PEW in musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), perception of stress and quality of life in workers. Methods. The participants were divided into two groups: control group (n?=?46) including non-participant workers of the PEW program, and PEW group (n?=?50) including workers who regularly participate in the exercise program. All workers answered the Nordic general questionnaire, the perceived stress scale and the quality-of-life questionnaire. Results. The PEW group reported a lower prevalence of MSDs for the trunk in the last 7 days and 12 months (p?=?0.021 and p?=?0.001, respectively), and for the upper limbs in the last 12 months (p?=?0.001) compared with the control group. The results for the perception of stress and quality of life showed no significant differences between the groups. Conclusion. PEW is a potential method to reduce MSDs in workers, but it was not efficient in reducing stress levels or improving the quality of life of the workers.     

Older adult falls at a metropolitan airport: 2009-2010

IntroductionWe investigated falls at a metropolitan airport to determine fall incidence, identify potential causes of these falls, and suggest opportunities for mitigation.MethodsWe used deidentified incident reports of all falls requiring EMS response that occurred at the airport during 2009 and 2010.ResultsOn average, one fall occurred every 2.3 days. Ninety-six percent (96%) of falls occurred in terminals. Of all falls, 44% occurred on escalators, making escalators the most common location. Seventy-two percent (72%) of fallers were females; 43% were ≥ 65 years; 92% of all falls resulted in a documented injury; 37% of falls resulted in transport to hospital emergency departments. Escalator fall risks include carrying bags (due to changes in baggage fees), using cells phones, not using handrails, and compromised strength and balance.Conclusions and ImpactDiverting at-risk passengers to elevators could significantly reduce the overall falls. Interventions targeting escalator falls have the greatest promise for reducing falls at this airport.     

Self-perceived mental well-being amongst Malaysian dentists

Purpose. To assess Malaysian dentists’ perceptions of their mental well-being. Methods. A self-administered questionnaire was developed based on a conceptual framework of mental health and well-being model. Two aspects were assessed, namely the physiological (two domains) and the psychological (six domains). Participants were asked to rate their experiences of the aforementioned aspects using a 5-point Likert scale ranging from all the time to never. Results. The response rate was 81%. Most of the dentists (61.7%) perceived having positive mental well-being. Under the physiological aspect, most respondents reported that they were ‘generally happy’ (93.3%), but about 30% stated they were ‘stressed physically and emotionally’. Of the six domains under the psychological aspect, positive well-being was observed in the ‘sense of coherence’ and ‘behavioural stress’ domains. Participants who were above 40 years old, married and had children reported having a more positive mental well-being when compared with their counterparts. Conclusion. Overall, most Malaysian dentists perceived having a positive mental well-being. It is crucial, however, to closely monitor and initiate early interventions for those with negative symptoms to ensure the safe practice of dentistry.     

Cardiovascular Strain of Sawmill Workers in South-Western Nigeria

This study aimed to assess cardiovascular strain during sawmilling operations in terms of physical workload, based on heart rate changes. We measured resting and working heart rates and calculated cardiovascular load (%CVL), cardiovascular strain (%CVS) and relative heart rate (%RHR) in 35 sawmill workers. Based on heart rate only, the work in sawmills was classified as very heavy and extremely heavy. Similarly, a high-level category was recorded for %CVL and a very high range for %CVS. Thus, the workload in sawmill operations is usually very high and can lead to physiological strain of the workers. There is a need to redesign the work content of this occupation to prevent excessive strain in the workers, as this will increase their productivity and reduce their health risk.     

Improving construction site safety through leader-based verbal safety communication

Background

The construction industry is one of the most injury-prone industries, in which production is usually prioritized over safety in daily on-site communication. Workers have an informal and oral culture of risk, in which safety is rarely openly expressed. This paper tests the effect of increasing leader-based on-site verbal safety communication on the level of safety and safety climate at construction sites. Method: A pre-post intervention-control design with five construction work gangs is carried out. Foremen in two intervention groups are coached and given bi-weekly feedback about their daily verbal safety communications with their workers. Foremen-worker verbal safety exchanges (experience sampling method, n = 1,693 interviews), construction site safety level (correct vs. incorrect, n = 22,077 single observations), and safety climate (seven dimensions, n = 105 questionnaires) are measured over a period of up to 42 weeks. Results: Baseline measurements in the two intervention and three control groups reveal that foremen speak with their workers several times a day. Workers perceive safety as part of their verbal communication with their foremen in only 6-16% of exchanges, and the levels of safety at the sites range from 70-87% (correct observations). Measurements from baseline to follow-up in the two intervention groups reveal that safety communication between foremen and workers increases significantly in one of the groups (factor 7.1 increase), and a significant yet smaller increase is found when the two intervention groups are combined (factor 4.6). Significant increases in the level of safety are seen in both intervention groups (7% and 12% increases, respectively), particularly in regards to 'access ways' and 'railings and coverings' (39% and 84% increases, respectively). Increases in safety climate are seen in only one of the intervention groups with respect to their 'attention to safety.' No significant trend changes are seen in the three control groups on any of the three measures. Conclusions: Coaching construction site foremen to include safety in their daily verbal exchanges with workers has a significantly positive and lasting effect on the level of safety, which is a proximal estimate for work-related accidents. It is recommended that future studies include coaching and feedback at all organizational levels and for all involved parties in the construction process. Building client regulations could assign the task of coaching to the client appointed safety coordinators or a manager/supervisor, and studies should measure longitudinal effects of coaching by following foremen and their work gangs from site to site.