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Making tires is exacting work that involves a lot of physical labor-pushing, pulling,
and lifting. The potential for injuries is great unless workers know how to carry out their
tasks with the proper methods and equipment. Goodyear Tire & Rubber.
At its Fayetteville, North Carolina, plant, Goodyear's ergonomics training took steps
forward when the safety team launched a "push, pull, lift" campaign to teach best practices
for these three kinds of work. The team invited volunteers from the workforce to learn best
practices and become "safety coaches" who would demonstrate methods during training
sessions set up on the plant floor. Employees were highly engaged and immediately began
working more safely, so the team concluded that hands-on training was an effective method
to continue and expand.
The leaders of Goodyear's safety program say the biggest challenge with this training
program has been keeping up with employees' demand to participate. Employees use the
ergonomics sandbox not only for basic safety training, but also to try out their ideas for
improving safe use of the plant's machinery. The payoff has been reductions in accident rates
and in the severity of accidents. Over the first five years of the program, the facility has seen
its costs for workers' compensation (a type of insurance for injured workers) fall by an
estimated 60%. Based on the success in Fayetteville, the company committed to offering
similar facilities at six more plants in North America and Europe.
QUESTIONS
1. Based on the information given, how did Goodyear link its ergonomics training to its
business needs?