Nowadays, most assembly lines in China are handicraft production lines, where workers repeatedly engage in simple labor for long periods of time. As a typical monotonous static work, assembly line work primarily relies on the isometric shortening of muscles to apply force or maintain a certain position. The characteristic of static work is that the physical exertion level is not high, but the work is monotonous and monotonous, with few opportunities to talk to surrounding partners, and it is easy to experience a sense of obstruction and fatigue. Based on the investigation of the serious work and health status of assembly line workers in the Pearl River Delta, it was found that compared with non assembly line workers, assembly line workers face greater information processing requests and mental load. The longer they work on the assembly line, the worse their mental health and job satisfaction.
The assembly line production arrangement puts lower level workers in a very unfavorable position in labor relations. Due to its highly specialized division of labor, the work on various positions on the assembly line is extremely simple, and the technical requirements for workers are very low. This kind of labor resource is very abundant in China, and the company does not need to provide a lot of technical training to operate it online. Therefore, the bargaining power of workers in the labor market was plundered, and the wage levels of assembly line workers were generally low.
The production arrangement method of assembly line greatly promoted the advancement of production power and successfully created industrialization. Over the past two decades, we have relied on this high-power, low-cost production method to promote rapid economic development, but to some extent, it has also led to human alienation. The ancillary factors of efficient production are the objectification of people, as well as the workers' boredom with their work and the severity of labor management relations.
Due to China's abundant cheap labor resources, we can foresee that the handicraft production line will continue to exist in China for an appropriate long period of time. Therefore, implementing more humane handling among assembly line workers has primary theoretical and practical implications for establishing a harmonious society.
1 The concept of people-oriented requires the implementation of humanized handling for workers working on the water line
Specifically, human centered processing primarily includes the following layers of symbolism:
1 It relies on people, who are the main body of socio-economic activities and the most essential resource among all resources. Ultimately, all economic practices are carried out by people; Without vitality, a company lacks vitality and competitiveness.
2 As a developer, life is limited. Intelligence is boundless, and everyone generally harbors a large amount of intelligence and talent. The mission of handling is to maximize the mobilization of everyone's enthusiasm and release their hidden energy.
3 It is about respecting people. Everyone, including assembly line workers, is a person with independent character and has the dignity and authority to be a person.
4 To unite people, handling not only requires discussing the enthusiasm, creativity, and essence of each member, but also discussing the cohesion and centripetal force of all arrangements, forming a strong collective force for the whole.
5 It is the free and comprehensive development of human beings, a symbol of the progress of human society, the highest policy of socio-economic development, and the ultimate policy to be achieved.
With the development of the social economy, after solving their fundamental material needs, people are paying more and more attention to their mental and spiritual needs, especially the new generation of migrant workers born after the 1980s, who have less economic pressure and more diverse needs. At that time, the company's processing mode significantly lagged behind the changes in labor demand, and the widespread use of "scientific processing" on the assembly line showed its significant unscientific elements. Therefore, adjusting the processing mode of the assembly line from a high-power strategy to a "high sense of love" and "high participation" strategy, so that the constantly added people can truly work and live like individuals, rather than being attached to machines, making work the primary component of life, rather than just a means of livelihood, is a necessary requirement for humanistic processing. Although this strategy may not be suitable for all situations, especially in the current situation where China's overall production capacity and income levels are still relatively low, we must adhere to the principle of "power first". However, the humanized handling of assembly line workers represents the direction of human progress.
2 The path of humanized handling for assembly line workers
1. Respected assembly line workers
Managers at all levels of the company should treat assembly line workers with equality, attention, honesty, and friendship, and oppose practices that insult workers' character, impose on others, and violate their dignity through various excuses.
Firstly, we should respect and try our best to meet the needs of the assembly line workers. They work not only to seek financial income, but also to satisfy social and psychological desires such as friendship, security, and belonging between people. The handler should try to meet the various reasonable needs of workers as much as possible, and integrate this satisfaction throughout the entire process of handling assembly line workers.
The second is to respect the value and dignity of assembly line workers, and to respect the improvement and development of their characteristics. As they are at the bottom of the company and often feel insecure, company managers need to have a sense of self-awareness to cultivate employees' self-esteem and invent job content that can demonstrate their own value.
The third is to respect the rights of assembly line workers, the right of frontline workers to obtain reasonable wages and benefits, the right to receive training and teaching, the right to participate in handling and expressing personal preferences, and the right to access relevant company information.
2. Creating a humanized working environment
There is a meaningful connection between the area, shape, ventilation, lighting, temperature, humidity, color and other environmental factors in the workshop and the thoughts and feelings of the assembly line workers, which affects their work methods, mood, work efficiency and job satisfaction, and even affects their physical and mental health. Inappropriate work environments can lead to dissatisfaction; A suitable workplace, although insufficient to achieve a high level of job satisfaction, at least will not result in dissatisfaction. Therefore, creating an outstanding assembly line working environment is the primary content of humanized management.
(1) The area of the workshop and each workspace should be appropriate. Overly narrow spaces can make assembly line workers feel inconvenient for each other, while excessively large work environments can also make people feel empty and uncomfortable.
(2) The production workshop should have sufficient lighting. People don't really like workplaces without windows, so if the production site has no windows or the windows are too small, some natural landscape paintings or other decorations should be decorated to compensate for their shortcomings. The lighting of the assembly line should ensure that the work area has appropriate brightness, there should be an appropriate brightness difference between the work object and the background, and prevent the light source from emitting glare in the work area, so that the brightness of the work surface is appropriate, uniform, stable, and free of glare.
(3) The temperature at the assembly line work site should be as suitable as possible. High workshop temperature can lead to napping and fatigue; The same low temperature on site can make workers feel uncomfortable. Generally speaking, the suitable temperature for factory workshops is between 12 ℃ and 20 ℃. The satisfaction with the temperature in the workplace is also related to the ability to control the temperature, which means that if workers can control the temperature, they will feel satisfied. It is not practical for the vast majority of companies to request the installation of air conditioning at the work site of the assembly line now, but this is one of the contents of humanized handling for assembly line workers in the future.
(4) The assembly line work site should have excellent ventilation conditions. Adhere to air circulation in the work environment, clean the air in the production workshop, and reduce air pollution caused by dust, gas, fiber, etc. during the production process.
(5) The colors on the assembly line work site should be charming. Due to the simplicity of color in creating an atmosphere, it can stimulate imagination and associations, and have a significant impact on workers' working mood and work quality. Practice has proven that color in the workplace is no longer an optional decoration, but a humanized approach. The production site should use bright color tones with a certain contrast, which have a better effect. For work sites with high temperatures, cool colors (such as green and light blue) are best used. The color of the equipment should be neutral green series and unaffected gray series, as these colors can prevent the eyes of the workers in the water flow line from feeling tired.
(6) Reduce noise pollution on assembly line work sites. Noise can harm everyone's health. To control noise, we must start from the three links of noise interference (i.e. noise source, transmission path, and receiver). Firstly, we need to control the sound source to reduce the oscillation of the machine equipment itself and the resulting noise; Secondly, noise transmission should be restricted by blocking and shielding the transmission of sound waves along the transmission path, and using methods such as noise reduction, sound insulation, sound absorption, and damping around the sound source to reduce noise; The ultimate goal is to protect the recipient by providing spare earplugs, noise cancelling caps, etc. for workers.
(7) Install mechanical equipment suitable for workers. Block equipment outside the production line from the workers to prevent them from touching. Planning a workbench that can adjust its height based on the height of the staff, the equipment being operated should be considered simple and highly reliable by the staff, and if necessary, easy to improve.
3. Implement a humanized work plan
Humanized work planning is related to mechanical rigid work planning. Traditional assembly line work planning is a typical rigid work planning that emphasizes division of labor and specialization. Job positions are placed within a structure with strict responsibility boundaries and division of labor criteria, characterized by repetition and standardization. The encouragement and satisfaction that workers can receive from their work are very limited, and it is not conducive to the full development of people. Humanized work planning focuses on the systematization, enrichment, and expansion of work, providing a relatively autonomous work environment to advance the inherent encouragement of the job itself, and striving to achieve a perfect connection between people and work. The primary methods for humanized work planning in assembly lines are as follows.
(1) Implement job rotation. Rotate the assembly line workers to another job position with the same level and near technical requirements, in order to reduce the monotony and boredom of workers' work and enable them to master more operational skills.
(2) Expansion of work. Expand the job responsibilities of workers working on the assembly line, enabling them to complete all or most of the processes in the assembly line, making the work itself more diverse, and then develop a greater interest in the work they are engaged in, leading to a greater enthusiasm for the work of the workers.
(3) Enriching work. Increase the autonomy and sense of responsibility of assembly line workers in planning, arranging, controlling, and evaluating their own work, grant greater power to lower level employees, provide more opportunities to participate in decision-making and handling, and then add employees' sense of achievement, responsibility, and satisfaction of recognition.
(4) Empower assembly line workers with more valuable work. Eliminating various negative and wasteful practices in routine work, linking human energy with meaningful and useful work. If a staff member feels that their job is of utmost importance and value, their morale on site will soar; On the contrary, if one feels that their time is spent on meaningless positions, the morale of the staff on site will be endangered.
4. Carry out career management and training for assembly line workers
(1) Do a good job in handling work and career matters. Assembly line workers are generally at the bottom of society, and their desire to change their current situation and seek a better life is very intense. However, due to their own experience and teaching limitations, they often feel uncertain about their future. If the company can assist production workers in detailed career planning through career management, find a reasonable positioning for themselves, and determine a life direction that meets both the needs of the company and society, as well as their own conditions, it will surely stimulate employees' ambition and a sense of seeking.
(2) Strengthen employee training. Assembly line workers often attribute their low daily skills to a lack of common sense and skills. If the company trains and assists workers in realizing their dreams, they will be grateful. Employee training is the driving force behind their work, which not only promotes the completion of company policies, but also enhances the work abilities of frontline workers and broadens their development space.
5. Establish a learning oriented arrangement and promote the full development of assembly line workers
Peter, founder of the learning arrangement theory? Shengji clearly stated in "... " that "in the future, a truly outstanding company will be one that can find ways to fully engage personnel from all levels and have the ability to continuously learn. Establishing a learning team in the assembly line, enabling assembly line workers to gain meaning from their work, overcome the "alienation" of traditional assembly lines on people, and then complete the "return" of humanity, this is precisely the focus of the theme of this article, "Humanized Handling of Assembly Line Workers". Although the road ahead is long and arduous to achieve this goal, it only requires the wisdom of the world to "search up and down", and the assembly line and humanized handling will be able to achieve harmony, demonstrating the high power of the assembly line and completing all the work of the assembly line workers.
Article compilation: Foshan assembly line
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