The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a U.S. Department of Labor organization devoted to the health and safety of American workers. They offer various tactics to reduce MSDs (musculoskeletal disorders) in the workplace. Their Outreach and Assistance program, designed to interface with workers directly, is one of four in their four-pronged approach to aiding the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders in the workplace. The other aspects of the four-pronged approach are: Guidelines, Enforcement and the National Advisory Committee.
Ergonomics is the science of designing and maintaining products, machines and work environments that cause the least stress upon the human body and result in the fewest instances of injury and discomfort. The four prongs of the Occupational Safety & Health Administrations approach to ergonomic safety have different areas of focus. The Enforcement branch has to do with the inspections carried out by this and other organizations to assure that work environments are as safe as they can be. When they find organizations that violate standards of ergonomic safety they alert authorities and attempt to alter the situation. The...