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"L'invisible qui fait mal“ ( Invisible that hurts )

Unions and researchers work together to lift a ton of feathers: Gaining recognition for women’s OHS problems in Québec. "L'invisible qui fait mal“ ( Invisible that hurts ). Partnership between

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"L'invisible qui fait mal“ ( Invisible that hurts )

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  1. Unions and researchers work together to lift a ton of feathers:Gaining recognition for women’s OHS problems in Québec

  2. "L'invisible qui fait mal“ (Invisible that hurts) • Partnership between • the 3 major trade union centrals in Québec, represented by their women’s committees and health and safety committees • and a multidisciplinary research group (ergonomics, law, communications…) at the Université du Québec à Montréal • Formal partnership since 1993, supported by Québec government funds

  3. Reasons for the « invisible » partnership • (1) Understand why women workers report more pain and more difficult conditions when they appear to have easy, safe jobs • Sewing machine operators • Cashiers • Teachers • Hotel workers

  4. Reasons for the « invisible » partnership • (2) Help produce change • In the workplace • In policy • In compensation

  5. Women are concentrated in a few sectors, a few professions • In Canada, men are 55% of the workforce; 30% of men are in sales/services or administration/ finances. • Women are 45% of the workforce;60%of women are in sales/services or administration/ finances.

  6. Québec research in occupational health, 1999 Proportion of workforce that is female = 46%

  7. Priorities for intervention*, Québec, 2007 *inspections, health and safety representation, committee, action plan, etc.

  8. Refused claims for musculoskeletal disorders, by sex, 314 Québec appeals decisions, 1992-1998 • Women’s claims more often refused (64% vs. 50%, p =.016, c2 test) Lippel, 2002

  9. Risks not recognized Little research: Risks not identified Prevention not done Problems erroneously attributed to women’s “nature”

  10. Women’s physical workload appears lighter

  11. Plastics factory labourer 51 rolls of plastic @ 18 kg, 51 rods @ 7.3 kg, lifted 2x 2597 kg +Waste 15 kg Sewing machine operators 1869 pants, 265g 1869 hooks, 60g lifted many times = 2065 kg + cut thread 1420 kg + pedal 16821 kg Vézina, Courville 1990 A ton of feathers A ton of lead Total upper limb 2612 kg Total upper limb 3486 kg - lower limb 16 821 kg

  12. These women have a hard time when they fall ill • « I’m not lying, I really felt pain ….I’m telling the truth » Haitian immigrant sewing machine operator with uncompensated MSD

  13. Prolonged standing- cashiers

  14. Québec Health and Social Survey, 2000 Pain often or all the time

  15. Usual working posture, Québec, 1998 *** *** *** *** significant differences, w/m

  16. Hotel room cleaners • Union rep – The women are all (85%) complaining of MSDs but they are mostly over 35. We want to know whether there is a reason for their complaining. http://dbacon.igc.org/Work/beverly00.html

  17. Management • « The women are complaining but they are refusing to use the new ergonomic carts we bought for them » • « They need training by an ergonomist » Ana María Seifert, an ergonomist, did a study

  18. Hotel study • 146 hours of observations, 2 hotels • Posture analysis: bed making, bathroom cleaning, cart handling • Examine 82 carts: weigh, check effort to push, check contents, state of repair • Analyse inspection reports on quality of cleaning • Check state of linen

  19. old old new Cleaners’ cart • Cart weight =122-154 kg • Hard to turn The fear of change… these women are ageing

  20. Why do they « complain »? Height just right for the average man of European origin

  21. Workload – bed making • Source of work accidents and pain • Mattress lifted 8 – 13 times • 67% of the time, back is bent • Time: • Double bed 3m33s • King 5m37s • VIP 8m30s • More if sheets (26%) or pillowcases (34%) are damaged (outsourcing of laundry)

  22. Risky tasks • 90% of cleaning shift is spent cleaning the rooms, 13 – 90 min/room depending on its state, type, location. • Most difficult operations are: • Bed making • Toilet cleaning • Cart pushing, handling, turning, tilting • Together, these three take 60% of cleaners’ time

  23. Results • Recognition for the difficulties led to union actions, demonstrations, strike, negotiation of union contract (rotating strikes this summer) • Cleaners’ assignments decreased from 15 rooms to 14 or 13 (if two beds) • Attention to linen problem • Project to redesign the cart

  24. A ton of feathers: how it all adds up

  25. Workspeed in elementary schools Messing et al. 1997

  26. J. Riel

  27. Time use in secondary school teaching (87h -J. Riel)

  28. Differences in French teaching between a man and a woman (% time) Acad. Teach Acad. support ** M W ** ** * ** Emot. support Teach Behav. J. Riel

  29. A ton of feathers • Workspeed • Concentration • Bad air • Too dry • Violence • Lack of support • Prolonged standing Elementary school teachers

  30. Some changes • Recognition of the hidden workload in traditional women’s work • Recognition of importance of women’s teamwork • Some changes in labour contracts • Training sessions for those who represent workers for compensation • Training for judges • Improvement in women’s rate of compensation for MSDs

  31. Working together we can lift a ton of feathers

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