Ergonomic study on carpenters working in unorganised sectors of west bengal

Abstract

Carpentry in West Bengal is a long-standing informal industrial sector. Large quanta of people are engaged in this profession. Mainly the people from low socio-economic backgrounds are seen as carpenters. They do have a low educational background. Generally, the workers have taken this profession for their whole life. Carpentry may be defined as the process of making wooden goods and components, viz. furniture, door, window, roofs, floors, partitions, etc., with the help of different tools. Carpenters are involved in cutting, fitting, making, curving, designing, painting, and fixing wood and wooden products. It is also associated with renovating and refitting existing structures. The job starts with raw wood or wood-based product collected from sawmills or markets and ends with a finished wood product. They also work with wood plastic, fibre, glass, iron, steel, and aluminum. Carpentry is a popular small-scale industry. Carpentry units are mainly unorganized in nature. In West Bengal, small-scale carpentry units are even operated by a single person. Most of them do not possess any formal training. Carpenters can be broken down into two classes such as rough carpenters and finished carpenters. The rough carpenters finished their work outdoors using wood and other materials. Finished carpenters are involved in cutting wood, making furniture, fitting doors and windows, and are connected with interior designs. Although carpentry plays an important role in West Bengal s economy as well as the Indian economy, very little attention was paid to their occupational health and safety of them. Carpentry work in the unorganized sector is hazardous in nature. Hazards come from occupation or the environment. Prolonged association with hazardous conditions may lead to different physical and physiological impairments. Very commonly they suffer from musculoskeletal problems, respiratory problems, physiological workload or cardiac strain, oxidative stress, and auditory impairments. newline