Ergonomic Stress and Musculoskeletal Disorders Among Women in Rural Building Construction Industry

Abstract

Women are almost unskilled laborers and they face serious problems. In India, construction is the largest employer of unorganized labor next to agriculture. The construction industry is employing 70% of the total world population. Excessive ergonomic stress and carrying an enormous load on different body parts can cause various occupational health problems including fatigue, discomfort, and disability. Hence, an effort was made to analyze the troubles faced by women in building construction industry. The study was carried out in Dharwad city. The total sample was 120 respondents. Data elicited through a structured interview schedule. Weighing balance used to know the weights of materials carried by women. RPE scale was used to record the severity of pain. Results showed that more than 30% of workers had less than 5 years of work experience in building construction industry. All the women carried all types of load like stone, bricks, mud, sand & concrete in construction sites. The average weight of the stones carried was 16.50 kg and concrete were 18.10 kgs. Among upper extremities, upper back pain had the greatest mean score of 4.73 depicting very severe pain. The weight of the load per day was positively highly significant with pains in the eye, neck, and fingers among upper extremities. Workers were carried load beyond the recommended weights and causing MSD problems. So there is a need to redesign the work methods to reduce the work stress factors