Ergonomic workplace evaluation among office IT workers in Varna, Bulgaria

INTRODUCTION:The frequency of office-based work has increased significantly in the last decades. Employees are exposed to multiple occupational hazards, some of which are related to the static pressure on the muscles of the back, neck, and shoulders due to improper posture, irregularities in the office furniture, and improper breaks during the shift. The ocular complaints of office workers are also common and can be related to non-ergonomically designed work furniture and insufficient, irregular breaks during the shift.AIM:The aim of this article is to create and apply an instrument for ergonomic assessment of office facilities. In addition, it includes evaluation of the ergonomic factors in the office environment during the work shift and prescribe preventive measures.MATERIALS AND METHODS:For the needs of ergonomic evaluation of the working environment in the IT industry, an assessment instrument was developed.RESULTS:Office IT workers (173) received ergonomic evaluation of their workplace in the period October–December 2021. The mean age of the employees was 32.49 +/- 0.59 (21 to 54 years). Gender distribution of the workers was with dominance of the men—117 individuals, or 67.6% of all participants. The assessment of the office furniture showed: 85 (49.1%) of the cases had ergonomic irregularities regarding the chair, 51 (29.5%) had irregularities of the desk. Correction of the work posture was recommended to 113 (65.3%) workers.CONCLUSION:Further studies are needed in Bulgarian companies to assess the proportion of employees affected by ergonomic occupational hazards and their impact