Analysis of the Difficulties Encountered by the Participants in a Participatory Ergonomic Process

Abstract

This communication discusses the difficulties encountered by an ergonomics group's participants in two different plants in an ergonomic analysis of varied tasks. During work meetings attended by the ergonomists, the two ergonomics groups analyzed three jobs using an analysis tool developed by the researchers. The participants' difficulties were identified from an analysis of the content of the ergonomists' interventions during the meetings. The results obtained from the analysis of the second job revealed significant differences between the two plants. In plant 1, the participants' difficulties were expected learning-related difficulties, while in plant 2, the difficulties were unexpected and major. In this latter plant, most of the ergonomists' interventions were integrated into discussion cycles and were related to high intensity difficulties. The results indicate that the participants had difficulties that related to their representation of the basic concepts and objectives of ergonomics; they also had difficulty detailing the solutions and did not recognize the benefit of collaborating with company engineers. The results suggest that ergonomics committees' learning is related to company culture and establishes the limits of the ergonomist's role when he fails to change the participants' representations.