Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 174 Hazard: ERGONOMIC

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause serious physical harm to employees, in that employees were required to perform tasks involving ergonomic risk factors (including, but not limited to, repetitive motions, force and awkward postures) resulting in stressors that had caused, were causing, or were likely to cause cumulative trauma disorder(s): (a) Department 10, station 3S where one employee was perform- ing staple lining corners (operation #411), sew welt to shell/poke glide holes/sew zipper to shell (operation #466/468/467) and rivet glides and pocket snap (operation #518). The evaluation of these tasks indicate that the employee is exposed to ergonomic stressors including: repetition, hand/wrist contact with sharp edges, force applied with fingers, one hand, both hands, from one shoulder, from both shoulders and by twisting, reach shoulders forward, elbow flexion and extension, hand/wrist extension, flexion, pinch, radial deviation, ulnar deviation and rotation, finger push, palm pinch, pulp pinch, lateral pinch, pulp grasp and medial grasp, and closed fist and pinch grip which are causing or likely to cause cumulative trauma disorders. The employer did not implement an effec- tive control strategy to reduce or eliminate such disorders. The injury and illness records for 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1991 document a pattern of cumulative trauma disorders associated with this operation. An employee who was exposed to undue repetitive motion trauma, excessive force and awkward finger, hand and arm positions had a history of CTD related problems. There was no documentation of job reassignment or modification used as a therapeutic approach for conservative medical treatment to address the CTD problem. The employee was returned to the same job stressors which exacerbated the condition as evidenced by continued symptoms. While ultimate responsibility for correcting the hazard rests with the employer, given his superior knowledge of the operation, feasible and acceptable abatement methods to correct this hazard include, but are not limited to, the following: ABATEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS: OPERATION 411 1) Provide uniform anti-fatigue mats over entire work area or use shock absorbing footwear. 2) Provide tool with adequate padding to prevent contact stress. 3) Provide adjustability for stapler machine to prevent wrist de- viations and stooping. 4) Reduce the number of job tasks to be performed to increase rest time. 5) Provide tool with larger padded handle to reduce pinch and use power gri p 6) Provide angled tool to reduce wrist deviations. 7) Provide sit/stand/lean option with adjustable work station. 8) Provide mechanical diverter bar or raise conveyor to allow tray to slide off rather than be lifted. ABATEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS: OPERATION 466/468/467 1) Provide sit/stand/lean option with adjustable work station. 2) Provide uniform anti-fatigue mats over entire work area or use shock absorbing footwear. 3) Provide awl with adequate padding and handle to reduce contact stress. 4) Provide lighter scissors to reduce wrist deviations. 5) Reduce the number of job tasks to be performed to increase rest time. 6) Redesign task to eliminate the need for wrist rotations. 7) Design punch for glide holes to eliminate manual punching. 8) Automate or assist guiding of welt and case through sewing machines. ABATEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS: OPERATION 518 1) Provide uniform anti-fatigue mats over entire work area or use shock absorbing footwear. 2) Provide adjustable work stations. 3) Provide adjustable machine. 4) Pad and tilt bins. 5) Reduce the number of job tasks to be performed to increase rest time. 6) Replace manual punching with automatic punching. 7) Provide sit/stand/lean option. SEE ABATEMENT NOTE: "ERGONOMICS MANAGEMENT PROGRAM"