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September 1998


The Economic Impact Of Call Center Ergonomics

BY HOWARD L. MCKEAN, MODE OFFICE SYSTEMS

Setting up a new call center? Expanding an existing one? Concerned about the condition of your work environment? From acquiring space and technology to employee training and salaries, it seems that budget issues drain away work environment improvement dollars all too quickly. For this reason it is tempting to forgo costly furniture items like adjustable keyboard trays and work surfaces and other ergonomic equipment. But be forewarned: a dollar seemingly saved today in this area might very well mean many more dollars spent in the not too distant future for retraining costs that result from employee turnover, time loss due to injuries, and even injury claims against your company. You may also find yourself faced with the cost of retrofitting your call center with the ergonomic furniture you should have provided your employees in the first place.

If all this sounds like a gross overstatement of the facts, consider this: In 1997, California became the first state to enact a law requiring all businesses to make their offices ergonomically safer, with fines for those that don't comply; several other states are poised to follow suit. And the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is currently working through the regulatory process with the ultimate goal of establishing ergonomic standards in the workplace. Currently, it is gathering facts and comments with the view toward developing and publishing a formal regulatory proposal for comment in 1999.

Consider these sobering statistics as well. A 1997 study, entitled "The Economics of Ergonomic Disorders at Ford Motor Company," took a look at the economic impact of ergonomic disorders at this auto manufacturer's 55 U.S. production facilities and warehouses that employ some 100,000 workers. Of all the occupational injuries that occurred in 1995 (the focus year of the study), ergonomic disorders made up 30 percent of all compensible injuries, costing the company about $15 million, or 41 percent of all claims. "Ergonomic disorders," the study concluded, "are a significant group of injuries, both economically and in numbers of cases."

"Put aside the notion that workplace ergonomics is only about injuries, it makes good business sense as well," begins an article in the January 13, 1997 issue of the San Diego Business Journal. That article looked at all the ways ergonomics can impact a company's bottom line, including the fact that North American businesses spent $4,000 for every repetitive stress injury (the most common in call centers), in the process paying out a total of $3.6 billion in direct workers' compensation benefits for injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome, shoulder tendentious and back strains.

An ergonomically safe call center can have a positive impact on the bottom line, just as one that is unsafe can have a negative effect. In its July 15, 1996 issue, Industry Week published the results of a survey of 45 companies that were implementing ergonomic programs. As a surprising adjunct to reducing the cost of worker injuries, 70 percent reported increased productivity and 30 percent reported increases in product quality, "…achievements," the magazine noted, "that ultimately were reflected in the bottom line."

While these statistics speak volumes for themselves, I thought it might make more of an impact if you were to hear from some longtime customers of Mode Office Systems' call center products as to why creating an ergonomically safe call center makes good economic sense. If anyone is able to speak authoritatively about the impact of correctly designed stations on agent productivity, it's Denise Hession, manager, Facility Development for Reservations Sales at Delta Air Lines, Inc. She is responsible for eight domestic and five major international offices encompassing upwards of six thousand representatives. But Hession's call center experience goes much deeper than that. Having started out as a reservation agent and moved up through the ranks to her current position, Hession has gained valuable insight and perspectives that few others can boast.

"Over the years, I've seen it all," recalled Hession with a smile. "One thing I've learned from my experiences is that you have to provide your agents with properly designed workstations that accommodate them in ergonomically correct ways in order for them to be as productive as possible." She went on to note that it is also a critical factor in employee retention. "When employees are happy and comfortable, we find they have a tendency to remain on the job longer."

For all these reasons, Delta Air Lines has made a dedicated effort to ensure that its reservation sales representatives are provided with ergonomically correct furniture as well as proper training in its use. That means adjustable monitor arms and keyboard trays as well as ergonomically correct chairs and foot rests. "When you have agents who sit at their workstation for eight hours a day, it's extremely important to provide for their comfort," explained Hession. "And you can't underestimate the impact ergonomically correct furniture has on reducing on-the-job injuries." Since she herself once put in hours in front of a monitor, Hession values the input of the agents. "We also listen to our agents and respond to their needs whenever necessary," she said.

While Bankers Fidelity Life Insurance Company can't claim to have nearly as many customer service representatives as Delta Air Lines, its managers nonetheless realize the importance of providing employees with ergonomically correct furniture. When this Atlanta-based life and health insurance company completely renovated its offices two years ago, it took into account ergonomic issues by providing task seating with multiple adjustments and improved back and lumbar support, adjustable keyboard trays with wrist supports and other ergonomic furniture items. While Sandy Sandage, assistant vice president of Claims, can't precisely quantify such issues as increased productivity, he is confident it had a positive impact. He also mentioned other pluses for providing an ergonomically safe office for all his office and call center employees. "If nothing more, it made our employees feel good about themselves and their job," Sandage said. "It also provided us with a professional-looking environment."

Hal Porter, vice president of Call Center Operations for an electronics company, can't point to any definitive numbers, but he is confident his company's investment in an ergonomically safe call center has paid off in many different ways. "When we created a larger call center five years ago, ergonomic considerations were very important to us," he said. His belief that it was a worthwhile investment comes from the fact that, in the intervening years, there have been few complaints or claims by his agents for ergonomic disorders. "It's not like we've seen a dramatic drop-off in these types of complaints. In fact, they have remained relatively low both before and after we built the new call center," he reported. "But I think that's because issues like carpal tunnel syndrome weren't as understood then as they are today and agents back then were probably much more likely not to complain when they were having problems." So, how does he know investing in an ergonomically safe call center was worth it? "While these kinds of complaints have remained small in our call center, I hear from other managers that they are skyrocketing at others now that everyone understands what is going on and the dynamics that contribute to these types of conditions. That tells me we made a smart investment when we insisted on such features as adjustable keyboard trays with wrist supports and quality task seating," he reasoned.

Porter couldn't help but point out another benefit of providing his agents with an ergonomically safe call center. "I've worked in call centers for many years now. As agents neared the end of their shift, you could see their productivity go down, no doubt as a result from fatigue and discomfort that comes from sitting at a workstation that doesn't meet their physical requirements," he related. "Because we have provided for our agents' comfort, their productivity remains high throughout their shift and they are as personable on the phones at the end as they are at the start, something, I'm sure, our customers notice and appreciate."

Don't be fooled by the up-front savings that come from not purchasing the furniture items necessary to create an ergonomically safe call center, advised Delta Air Line's Hession. "Low quality isn't going to gain you anything in the long run," she pointed out. "The only outcome will be that you will have people who aren't comfortable and won't be focusing properly on their work or, worse, out with injuries or illnesses. Over time, the cost of low productivity or lost-time injuries will become prohibitive and you will only end up spending more money down the road having to rework or modify your agents' work environment because what you have just doesn't work."

Make Your Investment Pay
Purchasing ergonomic furniture is only half the picture. You can create the most ergonomically safe call center and it doesn't mean a thing if your agents aren't properly trained in setting up and using the equipment or even in the fundamentals of good posture and body mechanics.

During a recent visit to a large customer service call center, I couldn't help but notice the contorted positions many of the agents had twisted themselves into as they worked the phones. This was in spite of the fact that the company they worked for had gone out of its way to purchase very expensive, ergonomically correct seating that allowed multiple adjustments so that, no matter what the agent's height or body configuration, the chair could be adjusted to accommodate them. But herein lay the crux of the problem. No one had bothered to explain what the bewildering array of levers and adjustment points would do and why it was necessary to use them.

Initial training in equipment placement, proper posture and body mechanics plus ongoing reinforcement through newsletters, bulletin board reminders and team refresher workshops are the path toward making your investment in an ergonomically safe office pay off. Consultants exist to help you in this area and there are many books available on the subject of ergonomics. Remember: your rewards are happier, healthier, more productive employees and lowered lost-time injuries and expensive compensation claims.

Howard L. McKean is a call center specialist with Mode Office Systems. For more than 20 years, Mode has specialized in the manufacture of office and call center furniture designed to precisely meet customer needs, rather than cookie-cutter solutions.


 







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