Know thy user, know thy tool: a population review and critique of current ergonomic analysis tools for the agricultural workforce

Abstract

As work has changed with the introduction of novel technologies and ideas, there has been a decreasing number of assembly-line workers but also an increase in the variety of tasks performed. To effectively evaluate these new tasks, new techniques must be developed. The agricultural sector, in particular, would benefit immensely from a new evaluation technique. This industry is subject to atypical working conditions, defined as a nonstandard workday, which includes increased and often variable work hours per week, exposure to extreme weather conditions, and even increased age compared to white-collar and blue-collar workers. Thus, using traditional ergonomic tools is inappropriate with the many additional variables. Workers in the agricultural sector, termed leather-collar workers, also have a higher prevalence of MSDs, especially in the lower back, making the new evaluation method even more critical. This work exposes deficiencies with current ergonomic evaluation tools as it relates to the agricultural industry.