A study conducted to investigate possible health problems resulting from employees' use of visual display units (VDUs) in the library of North Carolina State University at Raleigh used a survey to identify the kinds of tasks performed at each VDU workstation and the rate of health complaints. Analysis of the tasks performed in the library…

Discusses possible risks to workers using visual display terminals (VDTs), standards relating to VDTs, the provisions of the European Community Directive concerning minimum health and safety standards, how the standards are being interpreted in the United Kingdom, and implications for libraries. A workplace assessment questionnaire is appended.…

Self-report ergometric inventories can provide valuable information to employers and can serve as a means of intervention to improve employee attributes. Based on the science of ergonomics (a science that studies the natural laws of work in order to maximize human efficiency in job performance), such an inventory focuses on the interaction of the…

Transfer of an older worker to a less demanding job not only creates a shortage of skilled labor, but causes the person to lose vitality and self confidence, leading to possible mental deterioration. Retraining of the older worker, moreover, can take five to ten times as long as that of a young worker. A special workshop for older or handicapped…