Toughen Ergonomic Rules, Members Tell OSHA

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Irene Easling, a cook for a New York state school district, chopped meat and stirred soup for 10 years, until the pain in her shoulders, elbows and neck forced her to seek help from her boss. “Well, Irene,” the boss said, “maybe you had better start looking for another job.”

Easling, who belongs to the Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA)/ AFSCME Local 1000, told her story at a mid-May hearing held by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. She and seven other AFSCME members urged OSHA to adopt stringent standards to prevent similar injuries.

Ergonomics is the science of making the job meet the physical needs of the worker. It is the number-one issue for workers.

AFSCME wants OSHA to require that employers fix ergonomic problems before people are hurt.

Peter Niznik, a New York bridge maintenance worker for the past 15 years and also a member of CSEA, testified about a fellow worker who underwent two back operations because of injuries suffered from efforts such as moving cement in a wheelbarrow.

“A concrete pump could have been used for this,” Niznik testified. Instead, his colleague “is now totally disabled at the age of 33.”