Tumwater, WA — An online tool designed to quantify the workload of janitorial jobs and evaluate workers’ musculoskeletal injury risk has been updated for use in large commercial and office building environments.
The Janitorial Workload Calculator, developed by the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, assesses musculoskeletal workload from repetitive motions, awkward postures, forceful hand exertion and cardiovascular workload. Users can enter data on tasks, tools and other parameters into the calculator, which then provides an exposure risk level for the job.
Managers and supervisors can use the calculator to design janitorial job plans to complete a janitorial contract and evaluate workloads of janitors at a given contract site. It also can be used by safety professionals to conduct job risk evaluations for specific workers.
The Washington L&I Cleaners’ Occupational Injury Reduction Emphasis research project spent four years developing the original tool after conducting focus groups, statewide surveys of janitorial workers and one-on-one interviews.
Along with expanding the tool, the CORE group plans to:
- Continue conducting voluntary detailed worksite observations with janitorial workers around the state, which will help it refine the calculator.
- Evaluate tools and cleaning methods to determine how they affect injury risk on the job.
- Interview more injured janitorial workers to identify root causes of common injuries and illnesses. This will help the group identify hazards and create prevention and intervention materials.
