Date: Mon, 20 Jul 1992 15:13:39 -0500
From: Phillip.Dampier@f228.n260.z1.fidonet.org (Phillip Dampier)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: VDT Study Concerns CWA
Reply-To: phil@rochgte.fidonet.org
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 577, Message 1 of 13

VDT STUDY EXPANDS KNOWN CAUSES OF REPETITIVE MOTION ILLNESS

WASHINGTON -- A major independent study of telecommunications workers
who use video display terminals, released today by the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, shows that work
practices and organization as well as psychological factors are
significant causes of ergonomic VDT injuries.

Most prior studies have acknowledged only physical causes of
repetitive motion disorders, which affect an estimated 50 to 70
million American workers.

Three years in preperation at the joint request of the Communications
Workers of America and US West, the study identifies 22 percent of 533
participants as victims of upper body repetitive motion disorders.
This, despite the fact that NIOSH found US West in compliance with 80
percent of established physical standards for VDT workplaces, the best
record of any telecommunications company whose workers are represented
by CWA.

"This study clearly shows that how workers are treated by management
is at least as important in preventing repetitive motion injuries as
the equipment they are expected to use," said CWA President Morton
Bahr.

The NIOSH study found that psychological considerations such as job
insecurity, high productivity demands, surges in workload, lack of
control over work methods and lack of support by co-workers all
contribute to VDT illnesses.

Its report also stated that work practice variables such as wearing
bifocals or contact lenses, typing skill and frequency of arising from
the chair play an important role in developing ergonomic disorders.
It also found that work organization factors like overtime, task
variation, and frequency of breaks are significant.

With voluntary participation of 93 percent of selected employees in
five occupations at three different locations, the study represents
"the largest, most comprehensive scientific investigation of VDT
ergonomic illnesses to date," said CWA Executive Vice President M.E.
Nichols, who with David LeGrande of CWA's Office of Occupational
Safety and Health, coordinated the union's participation.

Conducted at US West's Phoenix, Denver, and Minneapolis locations, the
study found that tendon-related disorders affected 15 percent of
participants and that 12 percent manifested hand or wrist problems.
Others had arm, shoulder, neck, or back disorders.

The incidence of ergonomic VDT illness NIOSH found is broken down by
job category:

    *  Loop provisioning center workers  --  36%
    *  Recent change memory admin center employees  --  25%
    *  Directory assistance operators  --  22%
    *  Centralized mail remittance workers  --  20%
    *  Service representatives  --  6%

Concurring with numerous studies conducted with CWA over the last
decade by Dr. Michael Smith of the University of Wisconsin, the agency
found that workers experienced additional stress because of electronic
monitoring.  Those who believed that it prevented socialization,
brought on extra complaints from supervisors or increased workload
were also more prone to ergonomic problems.

NIOSH commended US West and CWA on their use of joint labor management
committees on the regional and local levels, which led to the
company's high compliance with physical VDT guidelines. The agency
encouraged the committees to continue to address the physical, work
design, and psychosocial causes of ergonomic VDT illnesses.