Background
on stress, work and illness
Stress related disorders, repetitive strain injuries (RSI) and work
related musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) together rank as the world
number one workplace health complaints. International research also
shows that worldwide, far from improving, conditions in both traditional
industries and new, high-tech workplaces are getting progressively
worse, placing more and more workers at risk.
Although MSD, RSI and stress related disorders encompass many different
types of problems, there is one common denominator: they are to
a large extent related to the way work is organized (work rhythm,
work load, stress, monotony, lack of control, awkward postures,
repetitive movements etc.). Moreover, international research shows
that new management techniques like ‘Total Quality Management’,
various ‘Continuous Improvement Systems’ and ‘lean
production’ have aggravated the problem and have even led
to outbreaks of work-related disorders as they increase stressors
and strains in job design (work overload, speed-up, lacking control
of work pace, repetitive work, time pressures, uncertain responsibilities,
excessive requirements, multitasking etc.) and work organisation/conditions
(low pay, lone work, lack of job security, lack of control over
work, flexible work time, continuous changes in work organisation,
lack of participation in decision-making, harsh disciplinary procedures,
inadequate staffing etc.).
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