However, the nature of women s work, which is usually rapid, repetitive and target-oriented, means that they suffer different patterns of occupational injury and disability. But for the sake of brevity I can only address generalities. Some may believe that it is women s inherent weakness that contributes most to the development of injuries resulting from the strain on muscles and soft tissues. Evidence indicates that men asked to do the same work as women develop the same symptoms, sometimes in less time. It is the nature of the work design, not the women themselves, that determines what occupational illness or injuries emerge.
Occupational hazards fall into several categories.
Diseases such as cancer, breathing difficulties, kidney and liver illness, reproductive problems, arthritic conditions, heart disease, high blood pressure, and hearing loss are associated with factors in the workplace. Death and serious disability such as burns, amputation of hands or fingers are also found in unregulated manufacturing industries such as those making metal cooking pots, toys and fabrics. In days gone by, workers would be given danger money for continuing to work in hazardous conditions. In that way, hazards were regarded as part of the rigors of work. They embarked upon a series of social experiments with work design that revolutionised work and how it was done.