MGT4320 SEM 3_2013/14

A Study of the relationship between ergonomic work environment and work outcomes for
employees whose work at AIKOL, IIUM Gombak.
1.0: Introduction
After completing several years of study, surely everyone would expect good prospect
of working experience which include suitable payment, nice working environment,
cooperative office-mate and others. Working as bosses or open own business will not really
influenced by such factors in order to maintain good motivation or productivity but those
factors are crucial for employees or white-collar staff. However, those factors might work
together which mean employees required all factors at the same time but some employees
desire of factors more than another. For instance, some employees might want high payment
or salary and did not care about working environment while there are workers whose seek for
job which have good relationship between office-mate rather than high payment. Hence, it is
important to investigate the relationship between factors influencing employees work
outcomes.
One of the factors that influence employees work outcomes is ergonomics work
environment. Ergonomics, according to Niu (2009) is considered a field that answered the
needs of jobs, systems, products and environments by integrates knowledge from human
science. The author also claimed that the ergonomics aim is to improve the comfort of the
worker as well as his health, safety and efficiency (as cited in Arruda and Gontijo, 2012).
While Dickerson, Brookham and Chopp (2011, p.316) stated ergonomics as a field refers to
rules for work, which in practice means creating workspaces and interfaces that
accommodate humans with a dual purpose; increasing productivity and mitigating the risks of
injury
Although, ergonomics work environment plays vital role in occupational performance
or productivity, there are some issues still arise. According to Mustafa et al.s finding (2009) ,
in many countries including Malaysia, the low level of ergonomics application and general
awareness are still existed. In addition, Annual report from The Department of Occupational
Safety and Health (DOSH) in 2009 also did not provided specific statistics on ergonomic risk
which further supported the previous statement (as cited in Rozlina Md Sirat and Awaluddin
Mohamed Shaharoun, 2011)

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2.0: Literature Review

Numerous studies have been done regarding the topic of ergonomics work
environment for employees and their work performances. Work performances can be in
various matters not only focused on productivity or efficiency but also employees health and
creativity. However, most researchers have been investigating on two types of work outcomes
namely job satisfaction and employees health but less concern on the aspect of creativity.
Ergonomics work environment can be divided into two components namely work furniture
and physical work ambience.
The physical work ambience did give impact on the employees physical health. Work
design that involves lots of movements and lifting heavy products for instance might cause
pains to the workers. Health and Safety Authority addressed several kinds of ergonomic
principles and description regarding the effect on physical health. For instance, avoid bending
forward which the further the trunk is bent forwards, the harder it is for the muscles and
ligaments of the back to maintain the upper body in balance. 1 In Malaysia, the guidelines are
available for Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) regarding ergonomic issues. For
instance, guideline on seating at work 2003, guidelines on standing at work 2002 and
guideline on occupational safety and health in the office 1996 described in detail about
posture and movement which showed the critical impact of physical work ambience on
physical health (Rozlina Md Sirat and Awaluddin Mohamed Shaharoun, 2011).
The level of creativity among employees is highly influenced by the physical work
ambience. According to kirton (1989) and Sim and Wright (2002), people with high score on
Creative Style Preference (CSP) which referred to a persons degree of preference for being
an innovators were apt to challenge the basic assumptions and paradigms in which their
problems were embedded (as cited in Pavee, 2003). Therefore, companies which highly
involve in website design or internet development spent extra attention to improve their
working environment.
Pavee (2003) described early research on job satisfaction has been identified the
working condition as one of several characteristics of the job associated with general
satisfaction. Shalley, Gilson, and Blum, (2000) states that iinovation-oriented cultures have
1 www.hsa.ie/eng/Publications_and_Forms/...Health/Ergonomics.pdf

MGT4320 SEM 3_2013/14

been linked to higher job satisfaction, intention to stay and commitment. As cited in Pavee,
2003, according to Vos and van der Voordt (2001, p. 60), the researchers claimed
"Workplace innovation is not equally attractive to, or worthwhile for all professional
groups. For workers who spend much time at the office, especially those whose work
requires a lot of concentration or who carry on a lot of confidential discussions, the
familiar, personal work room is still a valid concept, if in a modern style and with
powerful ICT [Information and Communication Technology]"
Another aspect of ergonomic work environment is work furniture. Many research have
been investigated the impact of this aspect towards employees work outcomes. In term of
impact on physical health, the selection of furniture used in office plays important role. For
instance, table or desk which placed higher than level of elbow will cause pains to workers.
Drew G (2005) claimed that compression of the forearm likely will take place when the
elbows are below the level of the work surface. Anonymous (2002) also highlight the same
issues that most desks or tables are around 29 inches high, which is great for doing paperwork
or writing but it is terrible for typing purpose. The author also mentioned the chair should
have backrest, swivel base and smooth-rolling casters because sitting slumped or awkward
position puts a strain on the back, shoulders and neck. Edward A (2001) described that
backrest of chair with lumbar support to maintain the backs natural S-curve. Therefore,
selecting suitable work furniture helps in preventing pains toward workers.
Other than that, some researchers described that work furniture able to influence the
job performance of employees. Emily C highlighted the study done by May and Schwoerer
that was conducted in a large Midwest meat-packing organization. Based on the study, the
result showed not only a decrease in rates of Cumulative Trauma Disorders but also an
increase in team performance when ergonomic changes like redesigning tool handles and
providing floor mats was prepared for workers. However, Zecevic et al (2000) mentioned that
recent study has found that the introduction of new product designs in the workplace often
result in user productivity because of a steep initial learning curve with the product (As cited
in Dawn, 2005). Dawn (2005) stated some examples of ergonomic interventions that lead to
possible initial decline in productivity such as using a new keyboard tray, ergonomic keyboard
or web based training program as substitutions for the standard issue work surface, keyboard
and in-person instructor training. Hence, the using suitable work furniture somehow give
impact on employees performance.
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3.0: Objectives
The current study aims :

To investigate the relationship of workplace environment and work outcomes of

employees in AIKOL,IIUM.
To relate the impact of workplace environment and employees work outcomes with
the concept of Human Resource Management.

4.0: Results
4.1.

The demographic characteristics of the respondents

Characteristics
i) Age
18-30 Years
31-40 years
41-55 years
56 and above
ii) Gender
Male
Female
iii) Job category
Non-academic staff
Academic staff

Number of respondents
9
4
1
0
5
9
12
2

Table 1.0: The demographic characteristics of the respondents according to age, gender and
job category.

4.2 The following figures related to the mean value for Work furniture, physical ambience,
physcal health ,job satisfaction, creativity and job performance.

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4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
1

10 11 12 13 14

Figure 1: The mean value for condition of work furniture.

4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
1

Figure 2: The mean value for physical work ambience.

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3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
1

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

Figure 3: The mean value for physcal health.

3.6
3.5
3.4
3.3
3.2
3.1
1

Figure 4: The mean value for job satisfaction.

3.6
3.55
3.5
3.45
1

.
Figure 5: The mean value for creativity.
3.9
3.8
3.7
3.6
3.5
3.4
3.3
1

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Figure 6: The mean value for job performance

5.0 Discussion
5.1 Physical work ambience and work furniture.
The aim of this study is to educate students on the importance of ergonomic work
environment for employees and their work outcomes. The first graphs shows the condition of
the work furniture among the staffs in Ahmad Ibrahim Kuliyyah of Law (AIKOL). It can be
seen from the graph from C1 until C4 about the condition of the desk in the kulliyah whether
it is ergonomic or not. Based on our finding it can be found that the chair can be adjustable
computed the highest mean value which was 4.00 followed by the chair is easy to perform
during job. The lowest was 3.428 about whether the chair is comfortable to them. This shows
that the chair can be adjusted however it was not so ergonomic because the chair is not so
comfortable to human body. Next, D1 until D3 question about their desk. Result indicates that
the most of the respondents said their desk have the right height which accounted with 3.785
mean value. The second was from desk have the right position and the last is the desk have
enough space for them with only 3.07. This means that the desk that provided have quite
limited space for them to put things while work. With this condition may face a difficulty to
the employees to perform their job because for making sure the employees perform well the
employers need to make sure that the employees can feel convenience with the surrounding.
F1 until F4 in figure 1 is about the condition in the workspace. The result depicts that the
workplace was confortable for them and they can work for a long hour was the highest. This
shows that the respondents feel pleasant with the arrangement in their office that is the reason
why the respondents are willing to work extra hours. This shows the positive side of the office
in kuliyyah of laws. The negative side was that the workspace does not have privacy which
only 2.50 out of 5. This indicates that the office is more open and not emphasize on the
privacy of their employees. This is not the big deal if the employees feel so, however it was
good for the employees because if the employers just let their employees to have privacy
condition so it may harm to the employers. Employers have the right to know about their
employees daily activities because to protect their company. Last but not least is the question
about the laptop or computer in the workplace. Findings illustrates that the mean value for
question G1 and G2 more or less the same with around 3.57. The question is about whether
the keyboard, computer or laptop positioned at the right place. The lowest shows that the
respondents cannot adjust the computer according to the eye level. This means that the
computer was not adjustable and the respondents cannot adjust the computer with the suitable
high with their eye level. This may be because the computer is static and cannot change the
position anymore. Although the computer is static but respondents said that the computer or
laptop and keyboard place at the right position. This shows that the position of the gadgets
was already being put at the strategic place that gives comfort to them. This is the reason why
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) are crucial. OSHA was created by
US with mission is to prevent work-related injuries, illnesses and deaths. Since OSHA was
created in 1971, occupational deaths in the US have declined by half and injuries by 40%.
Nevertheless, 4,547 workers were killed on the job in 2010 (3.5 per 100,000 fulltime
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equivalent workers) more than 87 a week or more than 12 deaths every day. (This is a slight
decline from the 4,551, fatal work injuries in 2009) 2. With the establishment of OSHA any
inconvenience or unpleasant thing in the workplace OSHA responsible to ensure safety at
work and a healthful work environment.
Figure 2 shows the graph on the work ambience in the workplace. Question A1 until
A4 about whether the workplace has the right room temperature, atmosphere, lighting
(illumination) or space to move around. This part, the lighting indicates the highest mean
value. This means that the respondents satisfied with the lighting at the workplace. The
lighting of any property can hugely influence personal well-being and health, motivation and
performance. In the workplace lighting has to meet occupational health and safety
requirements. What has to be taken into consideration when it comes to office lighting is not
just the aesthetics of how the lighting is incorporated into the building but the impact it has on
the workers and in turn the business. The first and most obvious reason for high quality
lighting is how light can eliminate workplace trips and falls. The better lit an area is the safer
it is, and if all workers can clearly see any hazards the easier it is for them to avoid them. Any
glare or shadowy areas can cause someone to walk right into a dangerous situation or
avoidable hazard, which can lead to all manner of serious injuries. As well as the obvious
safety issues concerning the lighting systems that you use in your workplace there are other
issues such as productivity and health effects, which can include unnecessary fatigue and
eyestrain3. The second rated for the atmosphere, and then available space to move around and
last was the room temperature which accounted 3.07. This means that it is neutral which was
not too cold and not too hot. However, during working hours the temperature in all indoor
workplaces must be reasonable. However there is no low for minimum or maximum working
temperatures. Therefore employers must stick to health and safety at work including keeping
the temperature at the comfortable level and providing clean and fresh air. Employees should
talk to the employers if the workplace temperature is not comfortable 4. Here, the employee
relation is importance. This is because every individual shares a certain relationship either
between their employers or colleagues at the workplace. A healthy relationship between them
is crucial in order to deliver their best performance. Therefore if any inconvenience relating
situation in the workplace employees responsible to inform to the employers is the employers
does not know about that. Not only regarding this matter like the room temperature besides
other matters that give impact to the performance of the workers. Last but not least are
question for T1 until T4 which is about time in workplace. The highest recorded that the
respondents have enough time to talk to colleagues which accounts 3.71 mean values out of 5.
These mean that the respondents have enough or more time on chit-chatting among them. It
2 http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=19889

3 http://www.safety.com/articles/importance-workplace-lighting

4 https://www.gov.uk/workplace-temperatures

MGT4320 SEM 3_2013/14

may give positive side to the company like everybody knew the latest news about the
company or it may also give the negative impact which can lead to gossip. A new survey from
marketing group Employment Office, which questioned 330 Australian employees, found
63% said chatter in the workplace had gone too far and negatively impacted on their
productivity even causing other workers to resent them. The problem is so serious that 4% of
respondents said they handled the excessive chit-chat in an angry confrontation, although
most just asked people to stop interrupting them5. Workplace professionals say the onus is on
managers to quickly spot excessive chat when it appears, and before it gets out of hand.
Therefore, employers should always alert and observe their workers. To talk or chit chat is
does not matter, but must have a limit and not an excessive chit-chat that can affect their
performance. Other than that, respondents are neutral for the time between phone calls and
handle a repetitive phone call with 3.42 mean values. The last was 3.28 which about the
breaks time that the company provided. From 1 April 2009, all employees are entitled to paid
rest breaks and unpaid meal breaks under the Employment Relations Act 2000. They are
entitled to one paid 10-minute rest break if their work period is between two and four hours,
one paid 10-minute rest break and one unpaid 30-minute meal break if their work period is
from four to six hours, and two paid 10-minute rest breaks and one unpaid 30-minute meal
break if their work period is from six to eight hours 6. An employer should give an employee
enough breaks to make sure their health and safety isnt at risk if that work is monotonous
for example work on a production line. Therefore, if the employees have a complaint
regarding the breaks hour that the company provided like not enough break hours the
employers should take serious and concern about it like take immediate action. This is
because if the employees do not have enough rest ensures will affect employees performance.
Action that can be applied is like job design. Rearrange the job and the suitable breaks hours
for specific job so that the employees have enough rest and can perform a new task
enthusiastic.

5.2 Physical health, creativity, job satisfaction and performance of the employees
The graph in figure 3 results to physical health condition among the
staffs in Ahmad Ibrahim Kuliyyah of Law (AIKOL). Based on the graph, it
can be seen that the highest mean values is 3.29 out of 5 which is physical
tiredness while, the lowest is 2.14 which is sinus trouble. Physical tiredness
or physical fatigue can be categorized of feeling very tired, weary or
sleepy resulting from insufficient sleep and prolonged mental or physical
work. Most of the respondents agreed that physical tiredness is the most
5 http://www.smartcompany.com.au/leadership/management/33045-your-officechit-chat-is-more-harmful-than-you-think.html#
6 http://www.dol.govt.nz/workplace/knowledgebase/item/1519
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MGT4320 SEM 3_2013/14

problems they have in their workplace. Moreover, the effect of fatigue can
be worst for long periods because it can leads to another pains such as
stress, hypertension, headache, sore eyes and so on. Providing safe and
healthful working environment is very important as it having an impact on
work performance. That is the reason why OSHA (Occupation Safety and
Health Academy) was established in every country including Malaysia. It is
because the main function of OSHA is to conduct workplace inspections for
ensuring whether employers meet minimum requirements of the OHS Act,
and providing a safe and healthful workplace.
Next, the graph in figure 4 shows the employees satisfactions of job
performance. According to the respondents, majority of them are agreed
to say that they feel enthusiastic with their works most days. However,
they do not really find real enjoyment in their works instead. This can be
proven through their answers rated, as measured by the mean values of
total respondents who chose neutral or disagree with a statement. The
reason why they do not really find real enjoyment in their works may be is
because of their jobs did not fit well with the interest or preferences
especially most of them are still young. According to researched
study people find their real enjoyment with their jobs as they get older.
Perhaps this is because the older people are; the more likely they are to
have found the right work for them. But still, theres little evidence for this
but I would certainly like to think it was true.
Secondly, they might have a perception of pay fairness. This is one
of the most reasons why most of employees did not really enjoy with their
works. Pay fairness seems very important nowadays because these
problems considering leads to employees change their jobs frequently. To
illustrate, if you perceive that other people doing a similar job get paid
about the same as you then you are more likely to be satisfied with your
job than if you think they are getting more than you. As a result, they
become dissatisfying, lack of motivation and less enjoyment doing their
jobs. Based on the finding, job satisfaction is crucial not just because it
boosts work performance but also because it increases our quality of life.
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MGT4320 SEM 3_2013/14

Therefore, in order to meet employees job satisfaction organization should

make an improvement such as identifying their employees interest and
pay for what they deserved.
Other than that, graph in figure 5 reflects their creativity when doing their jobs. Both
genders agreed that they often come up with creative solutions to problems rather than they
often have new innovative ideas and suggest new ways of performing their tasks. Based on
the results, I think creativity in workplace is not just be creative but, also have to
develop their mind. Moreover, it can be learned just like any other skill.
Everyone has this potential, but not everyone takes the time and effort to
transform it from a potential into strength. Hence, creativity is not just a talent or a
gift from God but it can be learned and gained through experiences and learning. Therefore,
these results agreed with a study by researched reveals that we are naturally creative and as
we grow up we learn to be uncreative. Thus, creativity is a skill that can be developed and a
process that can be managed. People can learn to be creative by experimenting, exploring,
questioning assumptions, using imagination and sintering information.
Graph 6 indicates there are several types of questions to determine staffs perceptions
on job performance. Most of them perceived that they are fulfilling their responsibilities
specified in their job descriptions. It can clearly be seen that question: B2 had a highest mean
values which is 3.79 out of 5. Followed by the same mean values of 3.64 where they believe
they are able to manage and organize their tasks efficiently and perform well on
their works. In contrast, with mean values of 3.64 as well most
respondents claimed that they disagreed with the statement said they
never neglect aspects of the job that are obligated to perform. It was an
issue that relate to being a Muslim especially working in Islamic
environment there is no exceptions from neglecting their job as long as
they are a human being, because nobody is perfect but it is only between
the person and Our Creator.

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MGT4320 SEM 3_2013/14

6.0 Conclusion
As mentioned earlier in the introduction, the purpose of this study was to educate
students on the importance of ergonomic work environment for employees and their work
outcomes. The study has shown that the physical work ambience and the work furniture
accounted for the staffs in Ahmad Ibrahim Kuliyyah of Law (AIKOL) are natural which all
recorded more or less about 3.00 out of 5.00 mean value which was neutral.
The impact of the pains or physical health was also more or less the same for all
estimated with 3.00 mean value which the same like the result for work furniture and work
ambience. However the most physical pains that the employees always face are physical
tiredness. This may be because the breaks hour given are not enough that is the reason why
the respondents feel tired and not enthusiastic or eager to perform the job. However the result
was neutral not to bad or too low that still can be control by the employees. They also can
come up with creative solution to problem. This is good because the employees use their
critical thinking to decide to the best of the company and without need to always depending
on the employers.
Result shows that there was a positive relationship between ergonomic environment
and the employees work outcomes. Based on the results, it can be clearly seen that in
12

MGT4320 SEM 3_2013/14

Kuliyyah of Law have neutral ergonomic environment about 3.00 mean value and the
outcome also neural with more or less neutral. Therefore, if the ergonomic work environments
for employees are really bad or worst it would totally give negative impact on their work
outcome.
One of the limitations of this research is that these findings only true for Kuliyyah of
Laws and cannot be generalized to others kulliyah in International Islamic University
Malaysia (IIUM). Besides that, the sample size is small which only about 14 staffs.
Since the study had only focused on kuliyyah of Laws, it is recommended that the
same study need to be conducted among employees in others kulliyah to see whether there are
any similarities in the findings.

6.0 Reference list

i)
Web pages:
www.hsa.ie/eng/Publications_and_Forms/...Health/Ergonomics.pdf
http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=19889
http://www.safety.com/articles/importance-workplace-lighting
https://www.gov.uk/workplace-temperatures
http://www.smartcompany.com.au/leadership/management/33045-your-office-chit

ii)

chat-is-more-harmful-than-you-think.html#
http://www.dol.govt.nz/workplace/knowledgebase/item/1519
http://www.osha.go.tz/index.php/about-osha/functions-of-osha
http://www.creativityatwork.com/2014/02/17/what-is-creativity/

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Arruda and Gontijo (2012). Application of Ergonomics Principles in Underground

Mines through the Occupational Safety and Health Management System OSHMS OHSAS
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Dawn (2005). Ergonomis Product Intervention and Training on Productivity and Comfort.
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Pavee (2003). Relationships among Creative Style Preference, Job Satisfaction, and Work
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