Characteristics of Job Rotation in the Midwest U.S. Manufacturing Sector

Job rotation has been advocated as a business practice to increase the skill of employees, as well as a suitable intervention for the control of work-related musculoskeletal disorders. However, little is known regarding the prevalence of job rotation, methods used to identify jobs to rotate to, or the benefits or limitations of job rotation. A web-based questionnaire was developed to survey job rotation practices in the Midwest U.S. manufacturing sector. Results indicated that 42% of the companies contacted use job rotation, and that companies appeared to be using job rotation on a permanent basis. Job rotation was used mainly to reduce exposure to risk factors and reduce work related injuries, whereas methods utilized to identify jobs to rotate to were based mainly on supervisor decision and ergonomic job analysis. These findings suggest further study is needed to determine if exposure to risk factors is being reduced through current efforts.