Abstract :
Work posture is the position and condition of the body or body parts during the performance of work. Good work posture is as important for the performance of tasks as it promotes health and minimizes stress and discomfort during work. Ergonomics assessment of women workers were carried out on a sample of purposively selected 30 respondents in normal health who were engaged in pre-packaging activities in a Bakery industry, Jorhat. An attempt was made to identify the working postures and musculoskeletal disorders prevailing among the women workers in the industry. The Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) is a widely used tool designed for the investigations of the work posture. RULA method was applied to analyze the working postures and musculoskeletal pain scale was developed to observe acuteness of pain among the workers in bakery Industry. From the observation and analysis of the result it was concluded that the women workers were highly affected by adopting awkward body posture while performing the activities. Twisting, bending and static repetitive tasks are the resultant of poorly designed workstation. These actions force them into a non-neutral position that increases the overall discomfort and pains at the knees, feet, legs, arms and shoulders.
Keyword :
Work postures, Musculoskeletal symptoms, Bakery industry, RULA method