Navigating Manual Tasks: A Worker's Perspective
In the realm of contact centres, operators often confront the potential risks of musculoskeletal injuries, ranging from soft tissue strains in the neck, shoulder, back, wrists, and hands. These hazards emerge primarily from manual tasks characterized by:
Working Postures: Involving sustained or awkward positions, leading to straining of body parts and discomfort due to compromised blood flow in the muscles.
Repetitive Movements: Resulting in increased 'wear and tear' of body tissues and heightened potential for muscle fatigue.
Duration of Tasks: Prolonged periods of similar activities without breaks, significantly impacting both general and muscle fatigue.
For a comprehensive understanding, additional insights on manual tasks are available in the Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021 and Part 4.2 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (WHS Regulation).
Decoding Musculoskeletal Disorders:
Musculoskeletal disorders specifically target the bones and soft tissue structures, excluding organs, within the body.
Mitigating Risks:
Safeguarding operators against musculoskeletal risks involves prioritizing well-supported and comfortable working postures throughout their shifts. To minimize these risks, contact centres can implement practical measures such as:
Work Area Design: Developing well-planned work areas with adjustable workstation equipment and furniture.
Work Organization: Enhancing the overall organization of work, encompassing breaks, task variation, software interface design, staffing levels, scheduling of workloads, and efficient training and supervision.
Breaks and Task Variation:
Acknowledging the sedentary nature of contact centre work, effective strategies involve encouraging changes in operators' posture and activity. This can be achieved by:
- Varying or rotating tasks to induce changes in posture.
- Promoting short, regular breaks away from workstations.
- Encouraging movement around the workstation during or between calls.
- Implementing micro pauses, such as moving hands off the mouse/keyboard when not in use.
- Locating printers, faxes, and forms away from the workstation to promote movement.
- Incorporating sit/stand workstations.
While scheduling work breaks, thoughtful consideration of amenity locations ensures adequate time for operators to access these facilities.
Understanding User Interface:
The user interface serves as the vital link between contact centre operators and their control and access to the computer software system.
Key Benefits of a Well-Designed User Interface:
A well-crafted user interface translates into increased productivity and satisfaction, reduced inputting, minimized errors, shorter training periods, and a reduction in both manual tasks and psychosocial risks. Engaging qualified specialists in the development process can effectively mitigate the associated risks.
General Principles for User Interface Design:
Ensuring consistency, visibility of the system state, alignment with the real world, a minimalist approach, minimal memory load, informative feedback, flexibility, efficiency, good error messages, error prevention, and clear task closure.
Managing Staffing Levels:
Striking a balance in staffing levels to meet the demands of work and time pressures is crucial for minimizing the risk of psychological and musculoskeletal injuries. Consideration should be given to factors like product or service type, peak call periods, emotional demands of work, operator skills, and the introduction of new scripts.
Navigating Shiftwork and Recovery:
Acknowledging the stressors associated with shiftwork, control strategies include worker training on potential health effects, providing flexible rosters, incorporating interactive tasks during night shifts, and allowing sufficient time between shifts for rest and recovery.
Essential Training and Supervision:
To enhance worker well-being, a comprehensive approach involves training and supervision in setting up and using workstation furniture and equipment, competent job execution, recognizing signs of fatigue or stress, seeking assistance for challenging calls, allowing adequate adjustment time for workstations, providing clear guidance on call monitoring, and fostering worker involvement in equipment trials.
In fostering a supportive environment, recognizing and rewarding workers for commendable performance adds a valuable dimension to ensuring their overall job satisfaction and well-being.