Shift-related Differeces in Industrial Injuries: Application of a New Research Method in Fixed-shift and...

To assess specific shift-related differences in industrial injuries, the authors examined differences in injury events and resulting injuries in a fixed-shift (plastics) plant and a rotating-shift (glass) plant. To circumvent the analytical problems associated with industrial injury measurement, they used an expanded database consisting of injury self-reports (near-miss events and reported and unreported events and resulting injuries) in addition to recorded injury data. The results indicated shift differences in both the numbers and the types of injury events and resulting injuries in the plastics plant and differences in the numbers of events and resulting injuries in the glass plant. In both plants, the self-report data yielded information beyond the recorded injury data. The authors believe that these expanded injury data can provide a useful safety-assessment tool.