'Power base' tactics for workplace change - an interview study with industrial engineers and ergonomists.

The work activities of industrial engineers (IEs) and ergonomists drive workplace changes. The purpose of this study is to compare the work practices of the two professions and examine (1) how IEs and ergonomists gain influence over workplace changes and (2) whether there are prevailing types of intentional interaction behaviours called Power bases (PB) present in the interaction tactics they employ. The study identified key behavioural strategies used by the interviewees to successfully influence workplace changes; these were then mapped to their corresponding PB. Results showed that IEs and ergonomists were successfully influencing workplace changes using several tactics across the spectrum of PB, with the exception of Reward and Coercion. The study concludes with a list of recommended workplace change agent tactics, and proposes that a PB 'analytical lens' can serve to increase the budding ergonomists' critical and analytical skills when considering possible workplace change tactics. Practitioner Summary: This interview study examines how workplace ergonomics change agents, represented by the two professions: industrial engineers and ergonomists, perceive and exercise their capacity to influence workplace change. Key behavioural tactics that interviewees have found successful are reported, alongside effects on short- and long-term relations with other workplace-influencing stakeholders.

Danger zone: Men, masculinity and occupational health and safety in high risk occupations.

The workplace is a key setting where gender issues and organizational structures may influence occupational health and safety practices. The enactment of dominant norms of masculinity in high risk occupations can be particularly problematic, as it exposes men to significant risks for injuries and fatalities. To encourage multi-disciplinary collaborations and advance knowledge in the intersecting areas of gender studies, men's health, work and workplace health and safety, a national network of thirteen researchers and health and safety stakeholders completed a critical literature review examining the intersection between masculinities and men's workplace health and safety in order to: (i) account for research previously undertaken in this area; (ii) identify themes that may inform our understanding of masculinity and workplace health and safety and; (iii) identify research and practice gaps in relation to men's workplace health and safety. In this paper we present key themes from this review. Recommendations are made regarding: (i) how to define gender; (ii) how to attend to and identify how masculinities may influence workers' identities, perceptions of occupational risks and how institutionalized practices can reinforce norms of masculinity; (iii) the importance of considering how masculinities may intersect with other variables (e.g. historical context, age, class, race, geographical location) and; (iv) the added significance of present-day labour market forces on men's occupational health and safety.

How compatible are participatory ergonomics programs with occupational health and safety management systems?

OBJECTIVES: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) are a major cause of pain, disability, and costs. Prevention of MSD at work is frequently described in terms of implementing an ergonomics program, often a participatory ergonomics (PE) program. Most other workplace injury prevention activities take place under the umbrella of a formal or informal occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS). This study assesses the similarities and differences between OHSMS and PE as such knowledge could help improve MSD prevention activities. Methods Using the internationally recognized Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS 18001), 21 OHSMS elements were extracted. In order to define PE operationally, we identified the 20 most frequently cited papers on PE and extracted content relevant to each of the OHSAS 18001 elements. RESULTS: The PE literature provided a substantial amount of detail on five elements: (i) hazard identification, risk assessment and determining controls; (ii) resources, roles, responsibility, accountability, and authority; (iii) competence, training and awareness; (iv) participation and consultation; and (v) performance measurement and monitoring. However, of the 21 OHSAS elements, the PE literature was silent on 8 and provided few details on 8 others. CONCLUSIONS: The PE literature did not speak to many elements described in OHSMS and even when it did, the language used was often different. This may negatively affect the effectiveness and sustainability of PE initiatives within organizations. It is expected that paying attention to the approaches and language used in management system frameworks could make prevention of MSD activities more effective and sustainable.

Contextual factors affecting task distribution in two participatory ergonomic interventions: a qualitative study.

This article provides an analysis of the evolution of the division of labour in participatory ergonomics (PE) programmes in two worksites. The analysis is based on interviews and field observations in the worksites. In both settings there was meaningful participation by both worker and management members of ergonomic change teams (ECTs) in the hazard assessment and solution identification stages, but as the teams moved to the implementation stage, worker representatives were marginalised and the participatory nature of the programmes was severely curtailed. The removal of workers from the process was the outcome of the interplay among the type of activities pursued in the implementation stage, the skills and knowledge required to carry out those activities, and workers' limited influence in the organisational hierarchies. Findings highlight the salience of the social context in which participatory programmes are located and the importance of examining participatory programmes as they evolve over time. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: This article contributes to a growing literature on the process and implementation of PE programmes. The article's focus on social and organisational factors that affect the division of labour and attention to the evolution of involvement over time extend current understandings of participation in ergonomics programmes.

Process and implementation of participatory ergonomic interventions: a systematic review.

Participatory ergonomic (PE) interventions may vary in implementation. A systematic review was done to determine the evidence regarding context, barriers and facilitators to the implementation of participatory ergonomic interventions in workplaces. In total, 17 electronic databases were searched. Data on PE process and implementation were extracted from documents meeting content and quality criteria and synthesised. The search yielded 2151 references. Of these, 190 documents were relevant and 52 met content and quality criteria. Different ergonomic teams were described in the documents as were the type, duration and content of ergonomic training. PE interventions tended to focus on physical and work process changes and report positive impacts. Resources, programme support, ergonomic training, organisational training and communication were the most often noted facilitators or barriers. Successful PE interventions require the right people to be involved, appropriate ergonomic training and clear responsibilities. Addressing key facilitators and barriers such as programme support, resources, and communication is paramount. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: A recent systematic review has suggested that PE has some effect on reducing symptoms, lost days of work and claims. Systematic reviews of effectiveness provide practitioners with the desire to implement but do not provide clear information about how. This article reviews the literature on process and implementation of PE.

Reflecting on a program of participatory ergonomics interventions: a multiple case study.

Evaluations of participative ergonomics (PE) interventions have reported mixed results, potentially due to both program and theory deficits. In a multiple case study of four worksites in different companies using a quasi-experimental approach, we examined process, implementation, and effects. The process evaluation was based upon fieldwork and interviews with approximately 90 persons. Implemented changes were documented by PE teams and intensity judged by the research team. The effect evaluation was performed using questionnaire-based measures (physical effort, influence, pain and potential confounders) among cohorts present both before and after the changes (N=258). Ergonomic change teams (ECTs) faced challenges securing employees' time, varying management commitment and significant production pressures. Nevertheless they actively introduced between 10 and 21 changes over 10-20 months of activity. Limited intensity of exposure reduction was observed, resulting in no discernible effects on physical effort or pain among the employees. Potential reasons that may account for limited effects and lessons for workplace parties, practitioners, and intervention researchers are discussed.

On the line: worker democracy and the struggle over occupational health and safety.

In this article we present a qualitative analysis of worker involvement in a participatory project to improve occupational health and safety at a Canadian manufacturing site. Based on interviews with workers in the plant, we consider the manner and degree to which workers experienced meaningful participation in the intervention process and some of the main barriers to worker participation. Findings emphasize the importance of the social and political context in conditioning the dynamics of joint management labor ventures specifically in relation to health initiatives. Interviews revealed few instances in which workers felt included in the participatory initiative; most often they felt marginalized. In the absence of structural change in the plant, workers described the health initiative as seriously limited in its ability to render meaningful worker participation. These results extend beyond this analysis of a participatory workplace health initiative, offering insights into the dynamics of institutional participatory process, and into participatory research practice generally.

The integration of chiropractors into healthcare teams: a case study from sport medicine.

This article examines the integration of chiropractors into multi-disciplinary healthcare teams in the specialisation of sport medicine. Sport medicine is practised in a number of contexts in professional and amateur sport. The current analysis focuses on the highest levels of amateur sport, as exemplified by the Olympics. Data are taken from interviews with 35 health professionals, including physicians, physiotherapists, athletic therapists and chiropractors. A defining feature of sport medicine is an emphasis on performance, which is the basis for a client-centred model of practice. These two elements have provided the main grounds for the inclusion of chiropractic in sport medicine. While the common understanding that 'athletes wanted them' has helped to secure a position for chiropractic within the system of sport medicine professions, this position is marked by ongoing tensions with other professions over the scope and content of practice, and the nature of the patient-practitioner relationship. In the context of these tensions, chiropractors' success in achieving acceptance on sport medicine teams is contingent on two factors: (a) reduced scope of practice in which they work primarily as manual therapists; and (b) the exemplary performance of individual practitioners who 'fit' into multi-disciplinary sport medicine teams.

Negotiating participation: understanding the "how" in an ergonomic change team.

In participatory ergonomic (PE) interventions, "how" effective participation by workplace parties can be achieved remains unclear. We conducted a case study of the dynamics of an ergonomic change team (ECT) process in a medium-sized (175 employees) automotive foam manufacturing plant. We present analyses of observer field notes and post-intervention interviews from which key elements on the dynamics of the "how" emerged: (1) impacts of facilitators' involvement and interests; (2) tensions in delimiting the scope of ECT activities; issues around (3) managing meetings and (4) realizing labour and management participation; and (5) workplace ECT members' difficulties in juggling other job commitments and facing production pressures. We highlight the ongoing negotiated nature of responses to these challenges by labour, management and ergonomic facilitator members of the ECT. We argue for greater examination of the social dynamics of PE processes to identify additional ways of fostering participation in ergonomic project implementation.