New Simulation Model for Workload Analysis Addressing Occupational Stress in a Production Company

Abstract

In today's world, occupational stress is identified as a major health issue within most organizations. The reason the spotlight has been focused on occupational stress in recent years is that it can have a negative impact on employees’ health and life. For this reason, this study focuses on the effects of workload on employees in a real-life workplace. The study is conducted on a department that carries out different projects year-round. A survey is designed for the purpose of this study to gain knowledge on the employees’ perception of their workload and how it can affect their lives. Moreover, a simulation model is developed to model the process of project lifecycle within the organization, to understand the behavior of the system, and to gain insights on the effects of various levels of workload on employees. Simulation models and a survey questionnaire have shown that although the utilization is high at 83%, the workload is poorly distributed among the employees which is impacting the productivity of the company. The paper concluded that efficiency can not be achieved without taking into account the working circumstances and the workload of the employees.