Overview

Today’s office work environment is changing at an accelerated pace. New technologies have made offices more efficient and specialized, but these developments have also led to a rapid increase in employee complaints of back pain and cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs), such as tendonitis and carpal tunnel syndrome.

Office ergonomic task analysis involves looking at how employees work and finding ways to adapt that work to avoid injuries. This analysis is rooted in the science of ergonomics.

Ergonomics is the science that seeks to adapt tasks and tools to fit the person. It’s a way of looking at the design of tasks, tools, equipment, workplace layouts, and the overall organization of work to fit the job to the person, rather than the person to the job.

By understanding how to analyze office tasks for potential ergonomic health hazards and how to create solutions to eliminate them, supervisors and managers can help employees work in ways that reduce the risk of CTDs, control the costs associated with those injuries, and increase everyone’s safety.

This program provides a step-by-step approach to conducting an office ergonomic task analysis. The course uses twenty-five interactions to actively involve your learners in the instruction, test their understanding of the material and apply what they’ve learned. Your supervisors and managers will learn how to analyze and adapt jobs to make them safer and help employees understand how to work in ways that protect them from injury.

The ErgoSAFE Process

• Defining ErgoSAFE
  

Survey The Facts

• Steps to a Survey
  
• Written Information
  
• Employee Interviews
  
• Company Organization
  

Analyze The Information

• Analyzing the Information
  

Focus On Every Aspect Of The Job

• Ergonomic Assessment Form
  
• Risk Factors
  
• Ergo-Triggers
  
• Observation
  

Eliminate Risk Factors

• Equipment Solutions
  
• Work Organization
  
• Brainstorming
  
• The Action Plan

PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES
This course will measure mastery on each of the following performance objectives. Upon completion, workers will be able to...

Explain the ErgoSAFE process

1. Define ErgoSAFE.
   
2. Identify the steps in the ErgoSAFE process.
   
3. Recognize that ErgoSAFE is a continuous process that requires creativity, trial, and error.
   

Survey information to uncover potential problems

1. Identify the three steps involved in surveying.
   
2. Name types of information available on file.
   
3. Describe effective ways to interview employees.
   
4. List the possible elements of hidden “hot spots”.
   
5. Choose examples of jobs with cyclical impacts.
   
6. Agree that work load is an important risk factor to consider.
   

Analyze survey information

1. Identify patterns that indicate potential ergonomic-related problems.
   
2. Analyze employee survey data.

Use an ergonomic assessment form

1. Explain the purpose of an ergonomic assessment form.
   
2. List the benefits of an ergonomic assessment form.
   
3. Recall the risk factors affecting employee well-being.
   

Focus attention on causes of an ergonomic problem

1. Define “ergo-triggers”.
   
2. Select examples of ergo-triggers.
   

Assess ergo-triggers

1. Recognize poor neck position.
   
2. Evaluate visual comfort.
   

Develop ideas to eliminate risk factors

1. Name two common ways to eliminate risk factors.
   
2. List examples of equipment solutions.
   
3. Discuss the need to combine ergonomics and body mechanics with employee styles and comfortability.
   
4. Recommend ways to add movement to office workers who sit at a computer most of the day.
   
5. State the benefits of changing from computer to non-computer tasks during the day.
   

Create an Action Plan

1. Explain the purpose of an action plan.
   
2. Describe the results of a completed action plan.