The Relationship Between Ergonomics and Employee Engagement

In my last blog, I questioned whether being average in safety and employee engagement is good enough.  Today, I want to explore the relationship between employee engagement and ergonomics.  The studies by Gallup that show high employee engagement correlates to increased productivity and higher customer services scores makes perfect sense to me.  Employees that are happy with their job and company will lead to better work and “happier” conversations and behaviors with customers compared with employees who are not satisfied with their job and disgruntled with their employer.

One of the most common surveys used to measure employee engagement is from Gallup.   Two key questions on the Gallup survey are, ‘Do you know what is expected of you at work?’ and ‘Do you have the right tools to do your job?’   With employee engagement as a back drop, these two questions can be used as perfect lead-ins to establishing an ergonomics system throughout the company.   Without an ergonomics system in place the tools, machines and equipment brought into the company won’t be properly evaluated for user comfort, behavior, decision-making and workflow.  The company may buy tools but they might not be the ones that truly fit the users and the task which results in wasted time, additional efforts and employee frustration.  An ergonomics system also becomes a part of the company’s culture and therefore, employee’s job expectation.  An effective ergonomics system relies on employee involvement—they are needed to identify any physical and behavioral risks and potential bottlenecks or work-a-rounds.  The goal is to make the work, the systems and processes in place beneficial to them and to the company.

The point is that ergonomics can and will lead to greater employee engagement and therefore, increased productivity, satisfaction and bottom line.