BACKGROUND: In times of the COVID-19 pandemic, employees around the world may be practicing part-time telework at home. Little is known about the working conditions at home and its impact on the employee’s occupational health. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review examines the working conditions at employees’ homes, the work-related disorders associated with working from home, organizations’ perceptions of ergonomics at home and how they support their teleworkers. METHODS: A search of electronic databases (Cochrane Library, Embase, Medline, Google Scholar, Open Grey, Pedro, PsychInfo, PubPsych, Scopus and Web of Science) was performed. Twelve studies were included in this review. RESULTS: The findings highlight the lack of ergonomic working conditions for home-based teleworkers. Furthermore, the results underline organizations’ lack of awareness regarding home-based policies, ergonomics programs and the health-related consequences associated with the absence of ergonomic support. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that home-based teleworkers have increased health risks. This assumption is substantiated by the fact that most of the included studies reported teleworkers who have experienced musculoskeletal issues. These results underline the necessity for implementing ergonomic design recommendations, especially for working at home. Further research is needed to understand the impact of ergonomics programs and workplace design for working at home.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, many employees have been required to work full- or part-time at home. This paper investigates the impact of perceived privacy on cognitive irritation and sleep problems among employees who worked from home during the pandemic. Additionally, we analyzed the role of cognitive irritation as a mediator between privacy and sleep problems. We created a cross-sectional questionnaire, which was completed by 293 employees who performed home-based telework in German-speaking Switzerland. A mediation analysis was then conducted using a multiple regression analysis. A test of the indirect effect showed a significant mediation path from perceived privacy via cognitive irritation to sleep problems. Hence, the negative indirect effect indicates that perceived privacy is an important job resource that may prevent sleep problems. Further research is needed regarding home-based telework and recovery strategies to prevent sleep problems.
The implementation of a so-called "Digital Factory" is a tremendous challenge for automotive engineering. The technical task is to effect a seamless information backbone spanning three key departments: Design, Production Process Planning, and Manufacturing. Also suppliers such as machine and tool vendors have to be integrated into the information flow. Furthermore, there is the challenge of assimilating the human factor into the digital factory. New production planning tools will significantly change not only the contemporary production process planner's work but also the collaboration with suppliers. This raises one major issue: how to integrate different user groups into the design of complex engineering applications for production planning. The authors focus on a case study about the development of a computer-aided planning (CAP) tool, which has been running since 1999 at DaimlerChrysler AG. The complexity of engineering processes and related information technology (IT) applications is examined and success factors for user involvement into IT development are identified. Finally, the article concludes with an adapted scenario-based approach for the interdisciplinary and participative development of complex engineering applications.
Many employees have had to telework all year during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though working from home has many advantages, there are also some disadvantages worth to consider. Lack of privacy is a relevant factor when it comes to the development of severe musculoskelatal issues. This study investigated the link between perceived privacy in home office and musculoskeletal complaints (MSCs). Family–work conflict (FWC), work–family conflict (WFC), and relaxation were tested as potential mediators for the relationship between perceived privacy and MSCs. The present study’s questionnaire was filled out by 287 teleworking employees. Hypotheses were tested via multiple mediation analyses examining levels of perceived privacy in home office, and its relationship on MSCs. Furthermore, the underlying effect of FWC, WFC, and MSCs were tested with a structural equation model. As assumed, lack of privacy while working at home was linked to individuals more frequently experiencing MSCs. However, the structural equation model showed no significant mediation effect. Work design efforts must address privacy while employees perform telework at home to prevent MSCs.
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