Work Study and Employee Productivity
Work study is the systematic examination of the methods of carrying out activities to improve the effective use of resources and establish standards of performance for the activities being carried out. Work study aims to examine the way an activity is conducted, simplify or modify the method of operation to reduce unnecessary or excess work, or the wasteful use of resources, and set up a time standard for performing that activity. The relationship between productivity and work study is evident.
If work study results in reducing the time taken to perform a certain activity by 20 percent, simply by rearranging the sequence or simplifying the method of operation without additional expenditure, then productivity will increase by a corresponding value, that is, by 20 percent. To understand how work study helps in reducing costs and time for a certain activity, it is essential to closely examine what that time consists of.
How the Total Time of a Job is Comprised
The time taken by a worker or a machine to carry out an operation or produce a given quantity of a certain product can be broken down as follows:
Basic work content + work content added by poor product design or materials utilization + work content added by inefficient methods of operation + ineffective time resulting from human resources contribution.
The basic work content of the product or operation
Work content refers to the amount of work "contained in" a given product or process measured in "work-hours" or "machine hours."
- A work-hour is the labor of one person for one hour.
- A machine-hour is the running of a machine or piece of plant for one hour.
The basic work content is the time required to manufacture the product or perform the operation if the design or specification of the product or service provided were perfect, the process or method of operation were perfectly executed, and there were no loss of working time from any cause during the operation (other than legitimate rest pauses permitted to the operative).
The basic work content is the minimum time theoretically needed to produce one unit of output. This condition is rarely achieved in practice, as actual operation times are often far in excess due to excess work content.
The work content is increased by the following:
A. Work content added by poor design or specification of the product or its parts, or improper utilization of materials
Poor design and frequent design changes
Excessive variety of products and lack of standardization of products or their parts can lead to work being produced in small batches, causing time loss as the operator adjusts between batches.
B. Work content added by inefficient methods of manufacture or operation
Poor layout and utilization of space
Inadequate materials handling
Ineffective method of work
Poor planning of inventory
Frequent breakdown of machines and equipment
C. Work content resulting mainly from the contribution of human resources
Absenteeism and lateness
Poor workmanship
Accidents and occupational hazards
Source of Reference: C.R. Wynne-Roberts and George Kanawaty, Introduction to Work Study, International Labour Office.
From India, Coimbatore
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746Work study is the systematic examination of the methods of carrying out activities to improve the effective use of resources and establish standards of performance for the activities being carried out. Work study aims to examine the way an activity is conducted, simplify or modify the method of operation to reduce unnecessary or excess work, or the wasteful use of resources, and set up a time standard for performing that activity. The relationship between productivity and work study is evident.
If work study results in reducing the time taken to perform a certain activity by 20 percent, simply by rearranging the sequence or simplifying the method of operation without additional expenditure, then productivity will increase by a corresponding value, that is, by 20 percent. To understand how work study helps in reducing costs and time for a certain activity, it is essential to closely examine what that time consists of.
How the Total Time of a Job is Comprised
The time taken by a worker or a machine to carry out an operation or produce a given quantity of a certain product can be broken down as follows:
Basic work content + work content added by poor product design or materials utilization + work content added by inefficient methods of operation + ineffective time resulting from human resources contribution.
The basic work content of the product or operation
Work content refers to the amount of work "contained in" a given product or process measured in "work-hours" or "machine hours."
- A work-hour is the labor of one person for one hour.
- A machine-hour is the running of a machine or piece of plant for one hour.
The basic work content is the time required to manufacture the product or perform the operation if the design or specification of the product or service provided were perfect, the process or method of operation were perfectly executed, and there were no loss of working time from any cause during the operation (other than legitimate rest pauses permitted to the operative).
The basic work content is the minimum time theoretically needed to produce one unit of output. This condition is rarely achieved in practice, as actual operation times are often far in excess due to excess work content.
The work content is increased by the following:
A. Work content added by poor design or specification of the product or its parts, or improper utilization of materials
Poor design and frequent design changes
Excessive variety of products and lack of standardization of products or their parts can lead to work being produced in small batches, causing time loss as the operator adjusts between batches.
B. Work content added by inefficient methods of manufacture or operation
Poor layout and utilization of space
Inadequate materials handling
Ineffective method of work
Poor planning of inventory
Frequent breakdown of machines and equipment
C. Work content resulting mainly from the contribution of human resources
Absenteeism and lateness
Poor workmanship
Accidents and occupational hazards
Source of Reference: C.R. Wynne-Roberts and George Kanawaty, Introduction to Work Study, International Labour Office.
From India, Coimbatore
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Hi, I'm Ritu Tewari, working as a lecturer and pursuing a Ph.D. My topic is "Job satisfaction and employee productivity with special reference to SIDCUL Udhamsingh Nagar." Can you help me in making a questionnaire related to job satisfaction and employee productivity?
Regards,
Ritu Tewari
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Regards,
Ritu Tewari
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A STUDY ON JOB SATISFACTION OF EMPLOYEES IN MS CHOLAMANDALAM GENERAL INSURANCE LTD..pdf
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