An ergonomic assessment of the airline baggage handler

CHAPTER 3LITERATURE REVIEWS3.1 Summation of Core ArticlesA literature search for ergonomic research and scientific reviews on baggage handlerswas performed. To the author's surprise, there were not many journal articles availablethat focused on baggage handlers and the ergonomic aspects of this work group.Literature review revealed that most articles referred back to a few articles written byGeoff Dell (Dell, 1997, 1998a, 1998b) in the late 90's. Dell wrote two main articles,which served as the basis for the many subsequent articles on baggage handlers, andergonomics, all of which referenced Dell. These two articles are "The Causes andPrevention of Baggage Handler Back Injuries: A Survey of Airline Safety ProfessionalsAirline Baggage Handler Back Injuries Vol 1 ; and "Airline Baggage Handler BackInjuries: A Survey of Baggage Handlers Opinion on Causes and Prevention Volt."Other articles that focused on the baggage conveyor systems were, "Postural strain anddiscomfort during loading and unloading flights: an Ergonomic Intervention study, andBaggage handling postures and the design of conveyors" by Thomas et al. (1995). I alsoreviewed investigations pertaining to baggage handlers and the use of back supports beltsof which were: "An evaluation of a weightlifting belt and back injury prevention trainingclass for airline baggage handlers" by Reddell et al. (1992), and "Effects of industrialback supports on physiological demand, lifting style and perceived exertion" byJorgensen et al. (1987). Furthermore, a few more articles that were non-specific tobaggage handlers that focused on back belts, lifting postures and applied lifting forces in20