Ergonomic Analysis of Work Activity of Data Entry Clerks in the Computerized Service Sector Can Reveal Unrecognized Skills

Abstract

Women are highly represented in those computer service jobs which are supposed to require the lowest level of qualification. The complexity of the activities which contribute to accomplishing such tasks in real life is usually unrecognized, as are the skills needed to perform these activities. The requirements of one such job, held by 7 women in a university administration, have been documented by ergonomic analysis. According to the supervisors, little mental effort was required, and "the employees do the job without even thinking about it." However, study of the real tasks involved revealed that the job required a great deal of innovative thinking, all of it unrecognized by the employer, and some of it actually forbidden. However, because the knowledge was not arrived at through systematic training, it is fragmentary and does not permit the employee to be fully autonomous or to transfer her skills to other jobs.

Health and safety of students in vocational training in Quebec: a gender issue?

“…In the service sectors, where women represent the majority, constrained postures, the accumulation of tasks, and sources of violence affect these workers' physical and mental health and their work-family balance [14,15]. Often perceived to be easier because they are associated with skills presumed to be intrinsically female, the cognitive, emotional and physical demands of their work are underestimated [5,8,26].…”

The Health and Safety Concerns of Immigrant Women Workers in the Toronto Sportswear Industry

“…Ergonomic research has sought to alleviate the pain of work through work redesign and reorganization of the workplace (36)(37)(38)(39)(40).…”

La pertinence de tenir compte du sexe des « opérateurs » dans les études ergonomiques : Bilan de recherches

“…Dès le début, plusieurs travaux ont permis d'identifier des exigences et contraintes du travail des femmes. Par exemple, on a étudié les travailleuses à la chaîne (Wisner et coll., 1967), les couturières (Teiger et Plaisantin, 1984), les téléphonistes (Dessors et coll., 1978), les préposées à la saisie de données (Teiger et Bernier, 1992) et le travail domestique des femmes (Doniol-Shaw, 1983). Mais, en général, les ergonomes n'ont pas prêté une attention particulière au sexe des « opérateurs ».…”