Why Pre-Hire Physical Abilities Testing is Critical for the Warehouse Industry
ErgoScience has created industry leading pre-hire Physical Abilities Testing solutions that are designed to make your workplace not only safer, but more efficient and profitable.
Regardless of whether it’s a private or public warehouse, a distribution center, a cold storage facility or an e-commerce fulfillment center and regardless of the types of goods housed within the facility, one thing all of these organizations have in common is that they have a lot of injuries.
Prevalence of injuries in warehousing. According to BLS statistics, in 2016, there were 5.1 non-fatal recordable injuries and illnesses for every 100 warehouse employees compared to 3.2 per 100 employees for all other industries (a 69% increase). The warehouse injuries that involved lost or restricted workdays was 3.7 per 100 full-time employees compared to the average of 1.7 per 100 full-time employees for all other industries (more than double the lost or restricted work days).
Nature of the work. And these statistics are not surprising when you consider the nature of the work – lots of materials handling (lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling), lots of reaching into overhead racks and bending down to reach into low racking, fast-paced and repetitive work with employees often compensated based on speed or pick rate, with the work sometimes being conducted on slippery surfaces, or climbing on and off equipment. The resulting injuries include low back and neck strains and sprains, torn rotator cuffs, slips, trips and falls and tendonitis of the hand, wrist and elbow. The list goes on…
Effect on KPIs: And with the average strain/sprain or slip/trip/fall costing $40K in direct costs alone, the work comp costs go on and on as well. And beyond the direct medical and indemnity costs, how do these injuries affect your organizations KPIs? When you have to hire temporary replacement workers or ask current employees to put in over time, what does that do to:
- Receiving productivity and cycle time?
- Putaway productivity and cycle time?
- Picking productivity and cycle time?
- Order lead time?
- Accuracy of receiving, putaway and picking?
Common Questions
How does pre-hire Physical Abilities Testing help? Pre-hire PAT helps you select individuals who are capable of safely performing the physical requirements of the jobs and avoid hiring injuries waiting to happen. You wouldn’t hire an accountant who didn’t have the proper training and credentials, would you? So why would you hire someone to do physically demanding work, who doesn’t have the strength, stamina, flexibility or balance to do it? It’s only a matter of time before these individuals experience a strain, sprain, repetitive injury or a fall.
When you have a physically capable workforce, work related injuries and their associated costs decrease. You have fewer lost and restricted duty days. Receiving, putaway and picking cycle times decrease and lead times shorten. Productivity and accuracy increases…all leading to increased profitability.
How is testing developed and implemented? Testing has to be job-specific in order to comply with ADA and EEOC. So, it’s important to have an outside consultant analyze the physical requirements of the job. From that analysis, those same consultants can develop job-specific tests. You have a choice – your tests can be administered at your workplace or in a nearby clinic. You make a conditional offer of employment. The test is performed. If the candidate passes the test, you proceed to hire. If the candidate fails, the offer can be rescinded. Alternatively, the test can be used to place candidates into a variety of jobs.
What will the test look like? For warehousing and distribution jobs involving order selecting, the test should most likely include elements of materials handling: lifting and pushing and pulling are typically the most difficult parts of the order selector’s job. It’s often important to test a variety of types of lifts as different muscles are used for different types of lifting. In addition, the test should include some component that measures endurance because the materials handling typically happens for prolonged periods of time.
The same holds true for delivery driver candidates - materials handling is also an issue. In addition, delivery drivers may have to navigate tricky client entrances – some involving stairs or ramps – that challenge balance and push/pull strength. When pushing and pulling need to be tested, the force required for testing must not exceed the force required for the job. So, both forces need to be measured with a force gauge.
In addition to the materials handling, prolonged or repetitive bending and reaching can also be an issue. Candidates must have the back and shoulder strength and endurance to handle these activities.
How do you know if the testing is working? One of the most common problems we see with testing programs is that once the program is established, no one monitors the outcomes. Does the testing program lower injuries, costs, lost and restricted duty days? Your company will never know unless you collaborate with your testing provider to do a before and after analysis. Your testing provider should be able to walk you through a simple analysis to determine this.
ErgoScience has the proof. As an expert with testing in the warehousing and distribution industry, ErgoScience has data that proves what we do works. Take a look the following example.
This client in the Automotive Parts Distribution Warehousing business came to us for testing in 2007 and gradually rolled out testing across all locations by 2008. They have experienced an 89% decrease in the annual average number of injuries sustained, going from a 10-year average of 53 injuries per year to an average of a mere 6 injuries per year!
ErgoScience has the proof. As an expert with testing in the warehousing and distribution industry, ErgoScience has data that proves what we do works. Take a look the following example.
This client in the Automotive Parts Distribution Warehousing business came to us for testing in 2007 and gradually rolled out testing across all locations by 2008. They have experienced an 89% decrease in the annual average number of injuries sustained, going from a 10-year average of 53 injuries per year to an average of a mere 6 injuries per year!
And they saved an average of 90% on their work comp costs!
So why delay? Experience the savings for yourself. Contact ErgoScience today for a free consultation.
"We chose to work with ErgoScience because of their professionalism both inside the office and out in the field. They analyzed the demands of our drivers and were able to develop a Pre-Hire Physical Abilities Test that and has cut our injury rate in half and reduced our work comp cost per employee by 68%. ”
JONATHAN MARSHALL, SAFETY DIRECTOR P&S TRANSPORTATION
All of our solutions are backed by years of reserach!
ErgoScience customers save an average of 65% on their workers’ comp expenses within just one year.
