Human factors and maintenance in delivery transportation:drivers‘ work outside the cab in focus

Abstract Purpose: To investigate safety at truck drivers‘ work outside the cab with a special focus on work environment and equipment maintenance to prevent occupational accidents. Design/methodology/approach: Two statistical databases on Finnish occupational accidents for truck drivers are analysed. Firstly, the national accident statistics database is examined to understand the broad context, and secondly a database on fatal accidents is analysed to better understand the root causes of the accidents and their relationship to human factors in maintenance. Based on the root cause analysis, four accident scenarios are created, and risk management measures are prioritized by occupational safety and health specialists (n = 7). Findings: The study shows that there are a variety of accidents in truck drivers‘ work. Most of the accidents occur outside the cab while performing tasks other than driving. Further, in-depth analysis of the fatal accidents increases understanding of the possibilities of different risk management and maintenance actions in preventing such accidents. Research limitations/implications: Databases contain different limitations concerning the data. Practical implications: Truck drivers‘ work environments are wide in nature. Efficient safety management requires broad participation from different stakeholders. In addition to safe work activities, work environment and equipment maintenance is highlighted as a key component for safe and fluent delivery transportation. Social implications: Road transportation forms a backbone of modern society. Accidents affect the efficiency of transportation and cause manifold costs reaching all the way to the societal level. Originality/value: This study adds an important dimension of delivery transportation to a current scientific discussion on human factors and maintenance

Holistic work system design and management:— a participatory development approach to delivery truck drivers’ work outside the cab

Abstract The road freight transport industry as a labour-intensive sector is dependent on the work ability and well-being at work of employees. The majority of the occupational accidents are related to work phases outside the cab. These work phases, which are performed in various different work environments, contain several kinds of ergonomic discomforts. This poses complex challenges for the employers from a safety and productivity point of view. The framework of this thesis is based on the foundations of ergonomics and design science. The main objective was to provide knowledge that can be implemented into the design and management of work systems for local and short haul delivery operations. Material was obtained from two sources. A meta-synthesis was performed to frame holistic management in a human perspective. Furthermore, additional in-depth design knowledge was obtained through participatory ergonomics video analyses on drivers’ work outside the cab. Video analyses resulted in 262 identifications of demanding work situations where ergonomic discomforts and risks of accidents occurred. Sudden over-exertions and strains, falls and slips as well as losing control of work equipment were the most common deviations related to drivers’ work outside the cab and mainly related to physical activities of movement and carrying by hand. The majority of the work situations identified were performed in cargo spaces or elsewhere within the truck structure or at premises and yards that are administered by the customers or other stakeholders. In these environments, drivers tend to perform their work manually or using different types of work equipment. This thesis provides new in-depth knowledge on drivers’ work outside the cab. The results show that different stakeholders can contribute to drivers’ work systems. The knowledge provided by drivers and other stakeholders can be applied to holistic design and management processes at company level. Moreover, the knowledge can also be applied to broader value chain design and management processes.Tiivistelmä Tieliikenteen tavarankuljetus työvoimavaltaisena toimialana on riippuvainen henkilöstön työkyvystä ja -hyvinvoinnista. Suurin osa tapaturmista liittyy työtehtäviin ohjaamon ulkopuolella. Näitä töitä tehdään hyvin vaihtelevissa työympäristöissä ja niihin työtehtäviin liittyy monenlaisia ergonomisia haittakuormitustekijöitä. Tämä asettaa haasteita niin työsuojelun kuin tuottavuuden näkökulmasta. Väitöskirjan viitekehys pohjautuu ergonomiaan sekä suunnittelutieteeseen. Tavoitteena on tuottaa tietoa, jota voidaan hyödyntää työjärjestelmien suunnittelussa ja johtamisessa erityisesti maaliikenteen jakelukuljetuksissa. Materiaali koostui kahdesta osiosta. Metasynteesillä muodostettiin näkemys kokonaisvaltaisesta johtamisesta ihmisnäkökulmasta. Lisäksi kuljettajat ja sidosryhmien edustajat analysoivat osallistuvan ergonomian keinoin videoaineistoa jakelukuljettajien työstä ohjaamon ulkopuolella. Videoanalyyseissa tunnistettiin yhteensä 262 työtilannetta, jossa esiintyy erilaisia ergonomisia haittakuormitustekijöitä sekä mahdollisia tapaturmariskejä. Äkilliset fyysiset kuormitukset, putoamiset, liukastumiset ja kaatumiset sekä työvälineiden hallinnan menettäminen olivat yleisimpiä tunnistettuja poikkeamia kuljettajan työssä. Pääasiassa nämä liittyivät kuljettajan liikkumiseen sekä erilaisten taakkojen kantamiseen. Valtaosassa (85 %) havainnoista kuljettaja työskenteli ajoneuvon kuormatilassa tai päällirakenteissa tai asiakkaiden tai muiden sidosryhmien hallinnoimissa työympäristöissä. Näissä työympäristöissä kuljettaja työskenteli sekä manuaalisesti käsin että hyödyntäen erilaisia apuvälineitä. Väitöskirja tarjoaa uudenlaista syvällistä tietoa kuljettajan työstä ohjaamon ulkopuolella. Eri sidosryhmät voivat osaltaan vaikuttaa kuljettajan työjärjestelmiin. Kuljettajien ja sidosryhmien tuottamaa tietoa voidaan soveltaa työjärjestelmien kokonaisvaltaisessa suunnittelussa ja johtamisessa niin yritystasolla kuin myös suunniteltaessa ja johdettaessa laajempia arvoketjuja

Experiences on a participatory ergonomics development process in a public health and welfare service center:meal and cleaning personnel in focus

Abstract Employees at public service organisations face various kinds of physical and psychosocial hazards and risks for accidents at their daily work. This study focuses on meal and cleaning service employees employed by a public in-house enterprise. Focus is paid to a large public health and welfare service center where such services are provided. This participatory study with multiple data sources shows the variety of different development challenges. Solution proposals and potential problem solvers are identified during the participatory development process to show the complexity but also the potential that such a participatory ergonomics oriented development process can provide

High performance work practices and well-being at restaurant work

Abstract This study focuses on human resource management (HRM) and high performance work practices in small restaurants. Empirical material is collected through interviews aimed at individuals working in the restaurant industry. In the first phase of this study in 2010, ten employees were interviewed, and in the second phase in 2018, five of them were re-interviewed. In 2010, the interviewees were working as employees in a restaurant where well-being was constantly challenged during work. During the second round of interviews in 2018, the interviewees had continued their careers in the sector and worked in five different restaurants. The findings indicate the signs of rapid change within the specific restaurant studied and provide insights into managing well-being at work in the restaurant industry as a whole – an industry that is constantly facing new types of challenges related to new working modes. Findings indicate that well-being at work is a holistic combination of individual and work-level activities; thus, a comprehensive approach to HRM is required

Work commitment modes of temporary agency workers in restaurants

Abstract In this study the focus is on single form of temporary work in order to create added value in comparison to previous well-being research in the temporary work context. Very little research has been conducted on temporary agency work in restaurants. An extensive survey is planned to be conducted in Finland. This study shows the pilot tests results of the survey. Examining the differences and similarities of work commitment between different worker groups in restaurants give insight for planning and targeting measures needed to increase well-being at work and productivity. Data is collected through a questionnaire, which is based, on the Organizational Commitment and QPS Nordic questionnaires, both of which focus on psychological and social factors at work. The data collection for pilot study was conducted as an online survey during a two weeks period. Link to questionnaire was published on a Facebook page for local restaurant workers in the Northern Ostrobothnia area with 130 members. In total 53 workers responded. It was possible to divide the workers into groups by their form of working. Four distinct groups were found, each with their own combination of commitment modes and features. A clear baseline was established by the normal full-timeworkers against which other groups (temporary agency workers) were compared. There were also controversial findingsthat should not be legally present in temporary agency work. Being just a pilot study, it is expected that this study has several limitations; sample size was limited, parts of the data were fragmented, many questions were left unanswered,translation problems and locally homogenous participants. However, this pilot test provided important information fora larger questionnaire that will be aimed to a larger audience nationwide in Finland later 2019–2020

Ergonomics is profitable:experiences from a holistic manufacturing plant level development process

Abstract In industry, to enhance the operating conditions of companies, development measures are required for work, work environment, technologies and products. Development of the work affects the quality of working life, which is one of the factors that make it possible to experience well-being at work. The goal of ergonomics is to organize the work and the working environment so that the changes benefit both the company and its staff. Thus, it is important to look at ergonomic work and work-environment development at the same time as productivity and well-being at work. This study examines an ergonomics development process in one manufacturing plant in Finland. The aim of this process was to improve productivity and promote well-being at work by improving production capacity, reducing non-productive work, and optimizing material flows. The project was facilitated through a participatory ergonomics process. As a result of the process, the plant’s total productivity increased by 5 percent, meaning an annual increase of 250 products in manufacturing capacity. The process also contributed significantly to health and safety, with decreased sick leave and occupational accidents and with increased perceptions of well-being at work. The company’s total cost saving in two years was €210,700

Schools and kindergartens as shared workplaces:an analysis of the work ability management challenges of the meal and cleaning service employees

Abstract Background: Service organizations and their employees encounter challenges today due to an increase in the average age of employees, a decrease in recruitment, and changes in work tasks, sites, and communities. These factors give rise to physical and psychosocial burdens that can lower the work ability and productivity of the employees. Objective: The goal of this study is to find practical solutions for challenges related to the work environment and practices at a public in-house enterprise providing meal and cleaning services. Also, the design of a model for the management of these load factors at municipal workplaces, where stakeholders from different subdivisions work together, is intended. Methods: The materials comprised of documents provided by the case organization, interviews, and work observations. Root cause analysis and participatory development sessions were carried out to find causes for the observed challenges and to discover practical solutions. Results: A number of microergonomic solutions were found. Also, broader subjects for development, common to several target workplaces, were discovered. Conclusions: The concept of a shared workplace, proved useful in exploring ways to manage work ability and productivity. A generalizable macroergonomics model for the management of load factors at shared workplaces in the public sector was proposed

Participatory macroergonomics study:schools and kindergartens as shared workplaces

Abstract Currently, many service organizations encounter challenges that set new requirements for management: individual employees face changes to worksites, job tasks, and work communities while there is a simultaneous decrease in recruitment and increase in the average age of employees. Both physical and psychosocial burdens caused by these factors can lower the work ability and productivity of the employees. The aim of this study was to find solutions for the management of these load factors in workplaces where stakeholders from different subdivisions inside the municipal organization work together. The concept of a shared workplace, which is common in industry, was contemplated to find successful ways to manage work ability and productivity. The case organization in this study was a municipal business unit providing meal and cleaning services to target workplaces, namely two kindergartens and four schools. The objective of the study was to find practical solutions for observed challenges related to work environment and practices at the target workplaces. Study materials were comprised of Occupational Safety and Health documents and statistics, interviews, and observations of work activities. Root cause analysis, by applying the 5*Why-methodology, was carried out to find ultimate causes for the work ability challenges. Practical solutions for the challenges were sought at participatory development sessions. Based on the results, a generalizable model for the management of load factors at shared workplaces in the public sector was proposed