Bob Cox shares with us a Story Out Of California on The growing problem of library-worker injuries is a mystery worthy of Sherlock Holmes. And an expensive one, having cost taxpayers $360,000 in medical settlements.
Last year, a record 17 employees at the 10-branch city-county system reported on-the-job injuries such as arm pain and loss of feeling in their hands.
Though the repetitive nature of various aspects of the work is believed to be a primary cause of the injuries, library officials can’t explain the recent increase.
“It’s really complex,” said Richard Eberley, who is in charge of circulation. “It’s not one thing.”
Get an ergonomics consultant fast!
When determining the optimal setup for computer and desk work, an ergonomics officer (or consultant) checks more than desk height. Chair height, angle of arm and wrist, leg/foot support, angle and distance of monitor, etc.
> In the past six years, 76 employees have filed disability claims, a sizable number considering the library system has 141 employees in all.
The percentage of claims based on the number of employees is more than surprisingly high. I am shocked that the insurance company didn’t cancel their policy based on that rate of claims. Not that the claims are illegitimate, but that the effort involved to eliminate them is clearly not working. I’ll bet even factory workers done have a claim rate that high.
I think most people would be shocked
at the rate of injuries in libraries, especially public ones.
You are expected to bend, lift (it’s worse if you are a man), pull heavy objects, it’s a disaster.
Re:Get an ergonomics consultant fast!
I pretty much roll my eyes at “ergonomic consultants” ever since one came to my library. He tried to get us to use new due date stampers (they didn’t work very well, so we stopped) because the old ones were bad for our wrists, but didn’t say a word about us having to lean over for long periods of time while sorting books from a bin. He seemed to focus on minor issues because the big ones were unfixable. The fact is, working in circulation is very bad for your back, and will remain so until we figure out an entirely new way to deal with checking books in.
Maybe something is wrong
This reminds me of Shoshanna Zuboff’s In the Age of the Smart Machine — I wonder whether some kind of organizational work-life issues are being acted out by or on the workers?