Participatory ergonomic interventions in meatpacking plants

In-depth reports of intervention projects to reduce ergonomic hazards at three meatpacking plants are described. The projects used a participatory approach involving front-line workers, supervisory personnel and others organized into teams for such problem-solving purposes. The work at each site was directed by university investigators with expertise in ergonomics and, in one case, organizational behavior. They facilitated efforts in team-building and team function and furnished observations of theprocesses involved and assessments of results. Reports of die three site studies depict a variety of contexts and opportunities for observing the merits of a participatory team approach in dealing with ergonomic problems in the meatpacking industry. In one case, the intervention advanced the company's initial efforts to develop an ergonomics program, providing training of workers and supervisors selected for teams to direct these efforts. In a second case, the corporate program already included use of ergo­ nomics teams and the report described the team's progress in address­ ing selected problem operations at one plant site. In the third case, the plant had no prior experience in using a team approach in solving worksite problems and the effort described involved selecting and training the team members to analyze ergonomic problems in their operations and to propose remedies for implementation. Findings from these various experiences include: • Successful participatory ergonomics programs re­ quire strong in-house direction, support, and ergo­ nomic expertise. • Training programs must develop both teamwork and ergonomic skills among participants. • Teams should include supervisors, maintenance and/ or engineering staff (who will actually implement