working conditions

ABSTRACT Low Back Pain (LBP) is a disease caused by non-ergonomic working conditions during manual handling activities. LBP is a leading cause of activity limitations, disability, inability and absenteeism from work. The aim of this study was to analyze ergonomic risk factors for LBP complaints and their relationship to the two in charcoal briquette manufacturing industry workers at PT. Arkelindo Bara Sejahtera. This study was quantitative with a cross-sectional approach. The study was conducted from June to November 2025. The population and sample were 183 and 151 workers, respectively. Research data was obtained from questionnaires, interviews, diagnoses, and direct on-site observations. Data analysis was conducted using univariate, bivariate, and multivariate methods. The results showed that as many as 64.2% of participants experienced complaints of severe LBP. It was also found that awkward postures, static work positions, repetitive movements and excessive force use were at risk of 62.9%, 70.2%, 73.5% and 57.6%, respectively. There is a relationship between awkward postures (p = 0.023, OR = 2.843), static work positions (p =0.004, OR = 3.875), repetitive movements (p = 0.000, OR = 6.013) and excessive force use (p = 0.003, OR = 4.178) and NBP complaints. The dominant ergonomic risk factor for LBP complaints is repetitive movements with an OR value of 6.013. This study indicates that repeated exposure to sitting or standing for more than half the working day, combined with awkward postures such as bending and twisting, were the dominant contributing factors to LBP. It is hoped that companies can implement ergonomic work positions to ensure worker comfort. Keywords: Charcoal Briquette Industry, Ergonomic Risks, Back Pain, Occupational Health. ABSTRAK Nyeri punggung bawah (NPB) merupakan penyakit akibat kondisi kerja yang tidak ergonomis selama aktivitas manual handling. NPB merupakan salah satu penyebab utama keterbatasan aktivitas, kecacatan, ketidakmampuan dan ketidakhadiran dalam bekerja. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk menganalisis faktor risiko ergonomi terhadap keluhan NPB dan hubungan keduanya pada pekerja industri pembuatan briket arang di PT. Arkelindo Bara Sejahtera.Jenis penelitian ini adalah kuantitatif dengan pendekatan cross-sectional. Penelitian dilaksanakan bulan Juni hingga November 2025. Populasi dan sampel berturut-turut adalah 183 dan 151 pekerja. Data penelitian diperoleh dari kuesioner, wawancara, diagnosa dan pengamatan langsung. Analisis data dilakukan secara univariat, bivariat dan multivariat. Hasil menunjukkan bahwa sebanyak 64,2% responden mengalami keluhan NPB berat. Itu ditemukan juga bahwa postur tubuh janggal, posisi kerja statis, gerakan berulang, dan penggunaan tenaga berlebihan masing-masing berisiko sebesar 62,9%, 70,2%, 73,5%, dan 57,6%. Terdapat hubungan antara postur tubuh yang tidak nyaman (p = 0,023, OR = 2,843), posisi kerja statis (p = 0,004, OR = 3,875), gerakan berulang (p = 0,000, OR = 6,013), dan penggunaan tenaga berlebihan (p = 0,003, OR = 4,178) dengan keluhan NPB. Faktor risiko ergonomi dominan terhadap keluhan NPB adalah pergerakan berulang dengan nilai OR 6,013. Penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa paparan berulang terhadap posisi duduk atau berdiri selama lebih dari setengah hari kerja, dikombinasikan dengan postur tubuh janggal seperti membungkuk dan memutar badan, merupakan faktor utama penyebab NPB. Itu diharapkan bahwa perusahaan dapat menerapkan posisi kerja ergonomis agar pekerja nyaman saat bekerja. Kata Kunci: Industri Briket Arang, Risiko Ergonomi, Nyeri Punggung, Kesehatan Kerja.

Psychosocial risks are an important occupational health concern and may be associated with emotional exhaustion through psychological mechanisms related to employees’ appraisal of adverse working conditions. This secondary analysis used a quantitative, cross-sectional design and data from 458 university employees to examine the mediating role of perceived stress and the moderating role of resilience in the association between psychosocial risks and emotional exhaustion. Correlation, mediation, and moderation analyses were performed, with bootstrap estimation based on 10,000 resamples. Greater psychosocial risk was associated with higher perceived stress and emotional exhaustion, whereas resilience was associated with lower perceived stress. Perceived stress partially mediated the association between psychosocial risks and emotional exhaustion, accounting for approximately 32.5% of the total association. The stress–resilience interaction was statistically significant in the unadjusted model, although its incremental contribution was small (ΔR² = 0.004); after adjustment for sociodemographic and occupational covariates, the interaction retained a similar direction but did not reach conventional statistical significance (p = 0.058). The model accounted for 59.6% of the variance in emotional exhaustion. Given the cross-sectional design, these findings represent statistical associations and do not establish temporal or causal relationships. The results support considering organizational psychosocial conditions, perceived stress, and resilience jointly when examining occupational well-being among university employees.

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the workload of medical personnel providing patient care, particularly inpatient nurses. Field interviews with nurses at hospitals in Bandung City indicated increased fatigue and sleepiness during the new normal adaptation period. This study aimed to measure mental workload and sleepiness among inpatient nurses in Bandung City. Methodology: A total of 275 inpatient nurses participated by completing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) questionnaire to assess mental workload and the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS) to measure sleepiness. Results: Mental workload among inpatient nurses ranged from high to very high, with scores between 76.93 ± 13.18 and 81.36 ± 13.53. Hospital characteristics, gender, age, and marital status were identified as factors associated with excessive mental workload. KSS scores indicated that nurses were in the very alert to alert range after completing their duties. Furthermore, 60.73% of nurses experienced very high mental workload, while 68.73% were classified as very alert. Conclusion: The findings indicate the need for hospital management to improve working conditions through better shift scheduling, resource allocation, and equitable distribution of staff support facilities to address the needs of inpatient nurses. Originality: This study examines mental workload and sleepiness simultaneously among inpatient nurses in Bandung City and identifies factors associated with excessive mental workload, providing a basis for improving hospital workforce management during the new normal adaptation period.

Purpose: This study aims to identify the factors influencing teachers’ job satisfaction using a middle school in Dazhou City, Sichuan Province, China. Research design, data and methodology: A quantitative research design was adopted. Questionnaire surveys were distributed to 90 teachers at a middle school in Tongchuan District using stratified random sampling. Multiple linear regression was used to examine the relationships between working hours, work pressure, organizational commitment, teacher self-efficacy, teacher career motivation, and job satisfaction. In addition, a 16-week strategic planning program was implemented with 30 teachers to improve job satisfaction. Paired sample t-tests were applied to compare the pre- and post-intervention results. Results: The multiple linear regression results show that organizational commitment, teacher career motivation, and teacher self-efficacy have significant positive effects on job satisfaction. Working hours and work pressure do not show significant direct effects in the regression model. After the program implementation, the paired sample t-test results indicate significant improvements in working hours, work pressure, organizational commitment, teacher self-efficacy, teacher career motivation, and overall job satisfaction. Conclusions: The findings suggest that school management practices that strengthen organizational commitment, support teachers’ professional motivation, and improve working conditions can enhance teachers’ job satisfaction. Practical actions such as flexible work arrangements, professional development opportunities, and participatory school governance may help improve teachers’ workplace experiences and support sustainable educational development.

The development of digital-based work systems has increased job demands and technology use, which may lead to burnout among workers, particularly in the telecommunications sector. This study aimed to determine the relationship between job demands and technostress with burnout levels among employees of PT Telkom Infrastruktur Indonesia in Medan. This study employed a quantitative cross-sectional design. The population consisted of 55 employees, and all members of the population were selected as samples using a total sampling technique. Data were collected using the Job Demands-Resources Questionnaire (JD-RQ), Technostress Creators Scale, and Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI). Data analysis was conducted using the Spearman Rank Correlation test with a significance level of 0.05. The results showed a significant and strong positive relationship between job demands and burnout, with a p-value = 0.001 and a correlation coefficient of r = 0.750. In addition, a significant and strong positive relationship was also found between technostress and burnout, with a p-value = 0.001 and a correlation coefficient of r = 0.687. High job demands and technostress were associated with increased burnout. The company is advised to strengthen burnout prevention efforts by optimizing workload evaluations that take actual working conditions into account, providing regular training on the use of digital systems, and enhancing employee recovery initiatives through the optimal utilization of annual leave and better management of work-related communication outside working hours.

This study investigates how a novice EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teacher enacts professional identity within the context of reading instruction. While prior research has established the dynamic and multifaceted nature of teacher identity, limited attention has been given to how professional identity is constructed and enacted through subject-specific pedagogical practices, particularly in reading instruction. This qualitative case study draws on interview and classroom observation data to explore how a novice EFL teacher enacts professional identities in reading instruction. The findings suggest that the teacher’s professional identity is not a fixed set of roles but is expressed through situated teaching practices and professional reflections. Specifically, three interrelated identity positions were identified—facilitator of meaning-making, cultural and textual guide, and reflective learner. These positions were reflected in instructional practices such as scaffolding, interpretive questioning, and the provision of cultural and textual background knowledge, as well as in the teacher’s willingness to learn from students and engage in professional development. Furthermore, the findings highlight the relationship between the teacher’s professional identity, individual agency, and the working conditions of her teaching context. By situating teacher identity within the practices of reading instruction, this study extends existing research by foregrounding the practice-based and context-sensitive nature of novice teacher identity. An Activity Theory perspective further informs the interpretation of how professional identity relates to pedagogical practices, instructional tools, and contextual conditions.

This study aimed to examine the effect of resilience on psychological well-being among firefighters in Kutai Kartanegara Regency, Indonesia. Firefighters are exposed to high job demands, hazardous working conditions, and repeated traumatic incidents, all of which may adversely affect their psychological state. In this context, resilience is considered a potential factor that enables individuals to adapt to stress and maintain psychological well-being. A quantitative approach with a non-experimental associative design was employed. The sample consisted of 162 firefighters from Kutai Kartanegara Regency who participated as respondents. Data were analyzed using simple linear regression. The results indicated that resilience had a positive and significant effect on psychological well-being, with a regression coefficient of 0.266 and a significance value of p = 0.021 (p < 0.05). These findings suggest that higher levels of resilience are associated with higher levels of psychological well-being among firefighters. The coefficient of determination revealed that resilience contributed 8.7% to the variance in psychological well-being, while the remaining 91.3% was influenced by other factors outside the research model. The findings underscore the importance of resilience as a psychological factor related to the well-being of firefighters.

هدف این پژوهش بررسی تأثیر تاب‌آوری بر بهزیستی روان‌شناختی در میان آتش‌نشانان شهرستان کوتای کارتاگارا، اندونزی بود. آتش‌نشانان با تقاضاهای شغلی بالا، شرایط کاری خطرناک و مواجهه مکرر با رویدادهای آسیب‌زا روبه‌رو هستند که همگی می‌توانند وضعیت روان‌شناختی آن‌ها را به طور منفی تحت تأثیر قرار دهند. در این زمینه، تاب‌آوری به عنوان عاملی بالقوه در نظر گرفته می‌شود که به افراد امکان می‌دهد با استرس سازگار شوند و بهزیستی روان‌شناختی خود را حفظ کنند. رویکرد کمی با طرح همبستگی غیرآزمایشی به کار گرفته شد. نمونه شامل ۱۶۲ آتش‌نشان از شهرستان کوتای کارتاگارا بود که به عنوان پاسخ‌دهنده شرکت کردند. داده‌ها با استفاده از رگرسیون خطی ساده تحلیل شدند. نتایج نشان داد که تاب‌آوری تأثیر مثبت و معناداری بر بهزیستی روان‌شناختی دارد، به طوری که ضریب رگرسیون برابر با ۰٫۲۶۶ و مقدار معناداری p = ۰٫۰۲۱ (p < ۰٫۰۵) به دست آمد. این یافته‌ها حاکی از آن است که سطوح بالاتر تاب‌آوری با سطوح بالاتر بهزیستی روان‌شناختی در میان آتش‌نشانان مرتبط است. ضریب تعیین نشان داد که تاب‌آوری ۸٫۷٪ از واریانس بهزیستی روان‌شناختی را تبیین می‌کند، در حالی که ۹۱٫۳٪ باقی‌مانده تحت تأثیر سایر عوامل خارج از مدل پژوهش قرار دارد. این یافته‌ها اهمیت تاب‌آوری را به عنوان یک عامل روان‌شناختی مرتبط با بهزیستی آتش‌نشانان برجسته می‌کند.