Work organization and work-related musculoskeletal disorders for sewing machine operators in garment industry

Wang, P.C.; Ritz, Beate; Rempel, David; Harrison, Robert J.; Chan, J.; Janowitz, Ira

doi:10.1016/j.annepidem.2005.07.026

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Therefore, the piece rate group was observed to be experiencing relatively higher workloads and higher musculoskeletal disorders. These findings were similar with a study conducted at the Los Angeles garment industry [18], Australian clothing industry [19] and also in the Job Demand control model (JDC) [12] and Effort-Reward Imbalance at work model [13]. The models stated that high job demands with low job control caused more strain resulting in physical illnesses among workers.…”

Section: Wage Payment Methods and Physical Exposuresupporting

confidence: 79%

“…However, studies on the relationship between high production demand, lack of control in working schedules and the effects on workers' physical health remain sparse and fragmented. Previous studies showed that female sewing machine operators in a Los Angeles garment industry [18] and an Australian clothing industry [19] were paid via a piece rate wage system. The report showed high work strain and high musculoskeletal pain compared to time rate wage workers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of payment method on work control, work risk and work-related musculoskeletal health among sewing machine operators

Nawawi

Deros²,

Daruis

et al. 2015

J. Mech. Eng. Sci.

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This study aimed to identify payment method and its effects on work control, work risk and work-related musculoskeletal health among Malaysian sewing machine operators. The study sample comprised 337 sewing machine operators (male, n=122, female, n=215; aged between 18-54 years old; mean 30.74±8.44) from four different garmentmaking companies in Malaysia. They were being paid via time rate wages (n=246) and piece rate wages (n=91). Data was collected through Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire and pen-and-paper assessment via Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA). From the study, the piece rate wage group was found to take fewer breaks, had high work production demands, worked at a faster pace and experienced more exhaustion and pressure due to increasing work demands as compared to the time rate group. They were also observed working with higher physical exposure such as repetitive tasks, awkward static postures, awkward grips and hand movements, pulling, lifting and pushing as compared to those in the time rate wage group. The final RULA scores was also higher from the piece rate wage group (72.53% RULA score 7) which indicated higher work risks among them. The study found that the type of wage payment was significantly associated with work risks (p=0.036, df=1) and WRMSD at the shoulder, lower back, forearm, and leg (p<0.005, df=1). The musculoskeletal pain in these regions were reported more often by the piece rate wage group than the time rate wage group (At shoulder; OR = 2.94 with 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.39-6.20, at lower back OR = 3.16 with 95% CI: 1.74-5.74, at forearm OR = 2.55 with 95% CI: 1.56-4.17, at hip OR = 2.49 with 95% CI: 1.52-4.07 and at leg OR = 2.97 with 95% CI: 1.72-5.15). It can be concluded that the type of wage system could be one of the contributory factors in a high prevalence of WRMSD and high ergonomic physical work risks among sewing machine operators. It is recommended that sewing machine operators are better off being paid via a time rate wage system compared to a piece rate wage system to reduce work risks and WRMSD among them.

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Section: Wage Payment Methods and Physical Exposuresupporting

confidence: 79%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of payment method on work control, work risk and work-related musculoskeletal health among sewing machine operators

Nawawi

Deros²,

Daruis

et al. 2015

J. Mech. Eng. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Also, working days were shown to be less in the case of workers receiving piece rate because of higher frequency of burnouts. Studies in the third category focused on musculoskeletal disorders or experiences of work-related injury and pain [16] , [17] , [18] , [19] , [20] . These studies found that the piece rate increased the number of work-related injuries, pains, and musculoskeletal disorders.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Type of Payment and Working Conditions

Rhee

Kim

Cho

2015

Safety and Health at Work

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BackgroundThe type of payment is one of the important factors that has an effect on the health of employees, as a basic working condition. In the conventional research field of occupational safety and health, only the physical, chemical, biological, and ergonomic factors are treated as the main hazardous factors. Managerial factors and basic working conditions such as working hours and the type of payment are neglected. This paper aimed to investigate the association of the type of payment and the exposure to the various hazardous factors as an heuristic study.MethodsThe third Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS) by the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute in 2011 was used for this study. Among the total sample of 50,032 economically active persons, 34,788 employees were considered for analysis. This study examined the relation between the three types of payment such as basic fixed salary and wage, piece rate, and extra payment for bad and dangerous working conditions and exposure to hazardous factors like vibration, noise, temperature, chemical contact, and working at very high speeds. Multivariate regression analysis was used to measure the effect of the type of payment on working hours exposed to hazards.ResultsThe result showed that the proportion of employees with a basic fixed salary was 94.5%, the proportion with piece rates was 38.6%, and the proportion who received extra payment for hazardous working conditions was 11.7%.ConclusionThe piece rate was associated with exposure to working with tight deadlines and stressful jobs. This study had some limitations because KWCS was a cross-sectional survey.

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“…Studies have found that participation in paid work increases women’s workload, family conflicts, and their vulnerability to male marital violence [22, 23]. Many studies about the effects of physical health problems of the industrial workers focuses on musculoskeletal injuries, pain, and fatigue [24–27]. Some studies have found neck, back and shoulder pain among female garment workers [28–30].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sewing shirts with injured fingers and tears: exploring the experience of female garment workers health problems in Bangladesh

Akhter

Rutherford

Chu

2019

BMC Int Health Hum Rights

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BackgroundThe ready-made garment industry in Bangladesh not only contributes to the nation’s economic development, but has created income opportunities for women, benefiting their whole family. However, these benefits come at considerable cost to the women. This research examines how the work environment and gendered family role in this conservative society affect the health of the female industrial workers.MethodsA qualitative study employed in-depth interviews (n-20) and focus group discussions with female garment workers (n-4) in two cities of Dhaka district. Further, key informant interviews (n = 4) with factory doctors, along with eight workplace observations were conducted to explore the lived experience of female workers’ health issues. Interview transcripts were coded in Atlas-ti, 5.2. The data were analysed using thematic analysis approach. The themes are illustrated with case narratives.ResultsThe female workers reported that their work has led to back and joint pain, continuous headache, eye pain and difficulty in breathing associated with inhaling fabric dust. Inadequate lighting, constantly sitting in one position without back rest and continuous noise from hundreds of machines makes them feel permanently tired. Further, the female workers reported that working in the factory and meeting the expectations of the families at home has doubled their workload. The doctors indicated that the physical work environment, their low job status and the nature of the job affect the health of female workers.ConclusionThis study found that female workers in the ready-made garment industry face a high risk of health problems. Both government and non-government organizations need to be better involved in designing interventions targeting these women, to protect them from such health risks. In addition, recognition by the whole society of the important role the women play in the economy is needed, so that support by both family and society can be improved.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12914-019-0188-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Work organization and work-related musculoskeletal disorders for sewing machine operators in garment industry

Cited by 7 publications

References 0 publications

Effects of payment method on work control, work risk and work-related musculoskeletal health among sewing machine operators

Effects of payment method on work control, work risk and work-related musculoskeletal health among sewing machine operators

The Type of Payment and Working Conditions

Sewing shirts with injured fingers and tears: exploring the experience of female garment workers health problems in Bangladesh

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