Participatory Ergonomic Interventions in Meatpacking Plants

In-depth reports of intervention projects to reduce ergonomic hazards at three meat packing plants are described. The projects used a participatory approach involving front-line workers, supervisory personnel and others organized into teams for such problem-solving purposes. The work at each site was directed by university investigators with experience in ergonomics and in one case, organizational behavior. They facilitated efforts in team-building and team function and furnished observations of the process involved and assessments of results. Reports of the merits of a participatory team approach in dealing with ergonomic problems in the meat packing industry.