Two large field studies were conducted to test the validity of the Job Severity Index (JSI) as an engineering tool for the control of manual materials-handling injury. Comparisons were made between the calculated JSIs of 453 individuals working in 101 different jobs and the injuries sustained by the same individuals over a period of 1057881 exposure hours (529 exposure years). The results revealed the existence of a job severity threshold above which the incidence, severity, and cost of injury dramatically increased. It was concluded that the JSI method can effectively be used to control injuries caused by the manual lifting of loads.
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