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"Recommendations for the elimination and prevention of the adverse effects of monotony on human performance in modern production (guidelines)". The monotony of labor and its impact on the functional state of the body working

Ways to overcome and prevent (according to Levitov)

1.Motivation. You need to see the value of the work.

2. You need to try to find interest in the monotonous work.

3. It is necessary to strive to increase the automaticity of working actions so that during work there is an opportunity to think about something interesting, to be distracted.

4. You can create external conditions to weaken the impressions of the monotonous work.

5. Introduction of functional music and breaks.

14. Modes of work and rest.

Mode of work and rest- the order of alternation of work and rest time during the work shift. It should include a lunch break and short rest breaks. Rest should be regulated, as it is more effective than breaks that occur irregularly, at the discretion of the employee.

The duration of rest during the shift (regulated breaks) depends mainly on the severity of the work and the conditions for its implementation. In accordance with the recommendations of physiologists, when determining the duration of rest during working hours, it is necessary to take into account the following ten production factors that cause fatigue: physical effort, nervous tension, pace of work, working position, monotony of work, microclimate, air pollution, industrial noise, vibration, lighting. Depending on the strength of the influence of each of these factors on the human body, the time for rest is set.

When setting a lunch break, it is recommended to be guided by the following requirements: you need to provide a lunch break in the middle of a work shift or with a deviation of up to one hour; the duration of the lunch break should be set at 40 - 60 minutes, so that the employee would use no more than 20 minutes for eating, and use the rest of the time for rest.

Short rest breaks are designed to reduce the fatigue that develops in the process of work. Unlike lunch breaks and breaks for personal needs, they are part of the working time and are assigned simultaneously for the team of the entire workshop or section. When developing them, it is first necessary to resolve the following issues in each case: the total time for regulated breaks; duration of one break; timing of breaks; rest content (active, passive, mixed).

In the second half of the working day, due to deeper fatigue, the number of rest breaks should be greater than in the first half of the shift. Physiologists have found that for most types of work, the optimal duration of a break is 5-10 minutes. It is this break that allows you to restore physiological functions, reduce fatigue and maintain a working setting. At work that requires a lot of stress and attention, more or less frequent, but short breaks (5-10 minutes) are recommended; in hard work with great physical effort - less frequent, but longer breaks (up to 10 minutes), in especially hard work, it is necessary to combine work for 15-20 minutes with rest of the same duration.

Rest can be active or passive. Passive rest (in a sitting position, lying down) is necessary for heavy physical work associated with gradual transitions or performed while standing, especially under adverse environmental conditions. Active rest is recommended at work taking place in favorable working conditions. The most effective form of active recreation is industrial gymnastics, that is, the performance of a special set of gymnastic exercises. Active rest accelerates the recovery of forces, since when changing activities, the energy expended by the working body is restored faster.

In each specific case, an appropriate typical mode of work and rest is selected either according to the indicator of fatigue established on the basis of data from physiological studies, or according to the indicator of a quantitative assessment of working conditions obtained by a calculation method, based on an assessment of individual factors of working conditions.

MONOTONITY is a property of certain types of work that require a person to perform monotonous actions for a long time or continuous and stable concentration of attention in conditions of a deficit of sensory loads. Many enterprises use CNC machines and robotic complexes, improve flow-conveyor lines, etc. All this helps to reduce physical load, but for such types of labor, the presence of labor is characteristic. Labor is most pronounced in flow-conveyor production, which is widely used in such industries as mechanical engineering, instrument making, radio-electronic, light, food, and others. M. characterizes a number of other professions - machine operators, stampers, press workers, operators of semi-automatic lines, and also operators at various control panels for technological processes.

It is necessary to distinguish between the concepts of "monotony of labor" and "monotony".

The monotony of labor is the monotony of labor operations or the production environment, that is, external, objective factors of labor activity.

Monotony is a functional state of the human body, determined by a complex of psychological and physiological changes in the body that occurs during monotonous work, that is, the body's response to monotonous.

There are 2 types of monotonous work:

1st type - M. action, in which a state of monotony arises in connection with the performance of monotonous, often repetitive work actions (all flow-conveyor lines and numerous types of machine, stamping, and other works). The degree of severity of the state of monotony depends on such factors of the labor process as the number of uniformly repetitive actions per unit of time, the duration of individual work operations, the degree of complexity of the operations performed, the forced pace of work, etc. The smaller the number of elements in the work cycle and the shorter the time for their execution, the more monotone.

2nd type - M. situation, in which the state of monotony occurs due to a lack of incoming information, as well as with passive observation and control over the course of the technological process. Characteristic for numerous varieties of operator work. The less information the operator receives per unit of time and the less meaningful it is, as well as the longer the information waiting intervals and the fewer objects of observation, the sooner the state of monotony develops.

Usually monotonous according to external signs in production conditions is combined with other factors of professional activity. Some of them increase the development of the state of monotony (low responsibility, permanent background, insufficient jobs, etc.); other factors hinder the development of this condition (physical heaviness, nervousness, a high degree of responsibility, the complexity of information being processed, etc.).

The influence of monotonous labor on the worker's body is very complex and diverse. The psychophysiological reactions of a person to monotonous work are practically the same for both types of monotonous activity. M. conditions and M. actions cause a unidirectional decrease in the level of indicators of the cardiovascular system and higher nervous activity, due to a decrease in the activating effect of the reticular formation on the cerebral cortex. It has been established that monotonous work primarily causes changes in the functional state of the central nervous system, which manifests itself in lengthening the latent period of a simple and complex visual-motor reaction, an increase in the percentage of disinhibited differentiations, a slowdown in the ability to switch attention, and a decrease in the mobility of the main nervous processes. When performing monotonous work, workers experience a kind of neurophysiological conflict. On the one hand, boring monotonous, which leads to a progressive decrease in the activity of various structures of the central nervous system. On the other hand, work must be done without compromising the quantity and quality of products. All this increases nervous tension, due to the need to volitionally maintain wakefulness and performance at a certain level.

It is necessary to develop measures aimed at reducing the negative consequences of monotony. These include:

automation of monotonous manual labor;

optimization of the content of labor, pace and rhythm of work;

combination of professions and alternation of operations;

the introduction of rational modes of work and rest with the introduction of 5-minute regulated breaks every hour of work in order to remove the M factor;

the introduction of industrial gymnastics complexes, functional music, etc. into the working day.

Monotony in Greek means monotony. In psychological literature, the concept of "monotonicity" characterizes a special mental state that occurs in a person as a reaction to monotonous and poor and impressionable activity. In socio-economic literature, monotony is associated with an excessive division of the labor process into simple elements (operations).

The psychophysiological essence of monotony is explained by the patterns of interaction between the processes of excitation and inhibition.

The main features of monotonous work are as follows:

Low-element composition, i.e. structural monotony and simplicity of labor actions;

Insignificant duration of the same type of labor operations and actions;

High repeatability of labor operations and actions per unit of time

When developing measures to prevent the development of a state of monotony, it is necessary to take into account the main psychophysiological phenomena that occur in the body of workers in conditions of monotonous work and largely determine its negative consequences.

Therefore, the developed activities should be aimed at:

Improvement of technological processes in order to reduce the influence of labor monotony;

Providing optimal information and motor loads;

Increasing the level of wakefulness, increasing emotional tone and motivation.

All this is achieved both by optimizing the content and conditions of labor activity, and by directly influencing the functional state of the human body from a complex of technological, organizational, technical and psychophysiological measures.

Among them, the most important are:

Automation and mechanization of monotonous manual work;

Improving technology, optimizing the content of labor;

Improving the organization of labor activity;

Improving the organization of the workplace;

Improving the conditions of the working environment;

The use of psychological and socio-psychological factors for the prevention of monotony;

Development of career guidance system;

Rational use of non-working time.

Engineering psychology. Subject of study. Relationship with sections of labor psychology

Traditionally, the subject of engineering psychology is defined as follows: "Engineering psychology is a scientific discipline that studies the objective patterns of the processes of information interaction between man and technology in order to use them in the practice of designing, creating and operating man-machine systems (HMS). Processes of information interaction of man and techniques are the subject of engineering psychology" (see Fundamentals of Engineering Psychology, 1986, p. 7). But in the psychology of labor in general, the object is the subject of labor. And then one could say that the subject of engineering psychology is the system "a person as a subject - a complex technique" (the main thing in the subject is his spontaneity, i.e. readiness for extraordinary actions in difficult situations and the ability to reflect his work, his spontaneity.

In engineering psychology, the main subject of labor is the "operator" - a person interacting with complex equipment through information processes.

As Yu.K. Strelkov, "the study and rationalization of human labor at the control panel should be carried out along with a change in the fundamental approach: the subject of consideration should be not only the labor process (activity, information processing), but also the profession and even the life of the worker as a subject of activity (carrier of needs, thoughts, memories, perceptions, feelings)" (Strelkov, 1999, p. 3). “The current period of studying the work of operators is different in that in understanding its features, psychologists rely not on designers and testers, but on the operators themselves, who have been servicing the system for a long (tens of years) time,” writes Yu.K. Strelkov (Ibid., p. 7).

Much in the work of an engineering psychologist depends not only on his ability to observe and comprehend what is happening, "but also on his ability to enter the group, take a neutral position, but at the same time observe and maintain an atmosphere of benevolent attitude. This is a very difficult task, since the crew is in no way In such circumstances, the group itself will not hesitate to take the opportunity and “test” the psychologist to determine the level of his intelligence, professionalism and a number of important human qualities (for example, , sense of humor)" (Strelkov, 1999, p. 8). Thus, it is important for the psychologist to constantly reflect on his work. Consequently, the subject of engineering psychology inevitably includes the work of the psychologist himself.

The main directions of engineering psychology:

Analysis of human tasks in control systems, distribution of functions between humans and automatic systems, including those with artificial intelligence.

The study of the joint activities of operators, the processes of communication and information interaction between them.

Analysis of the psychological structure of the operators' activity.

The study of factors affecting the efficiency, quality, accuracy, speed, reliability of the actions of operators.

The study of the processes of receiving information by a person, the study of sensory "inputs" of a person.

Study of the formation of commands for the execution of control actions by a person, the characteristics of speech and motor "output".

Analysis of the processes of processing information by a person, its storage and decision-making, psychological mechanisms for regulating the activities of operators.

Development of methods for psychodiagnostics, career guidance and selection of operators.

Development of methods for protecting operators from emotional burnout.

Analysis and optimization of operator training processes.

Use of research results for the design and operation of human-machine (human-information) systems.

Using research results for virtual psychology.

In the process of development of engineering psychology, there was a transition from the study of individual elements of activity to the study of labor activity as a whole, from considering the operator as a simple link in the control system to considering it as a complex highly organized system, from a machine-centric approach to an anthropocentric one.

In connection with the approach of the era of nanotechnology, a new direction in psychology, nanopsychology, is also being formed, so new tasks will arise for engineering psychology. Under the influence of the development of informatics, a virtual psychology was formed, which considers the "human-virtuality" system. The pioneer in the creation of this new trend in Russian psychology is N. A. Nosov.

The main methodological principles of engineering psychology are (see Fundamentals of Engineering Psychology, 1986, pp. 18-23):

The principle of humanization of labor (it is important to proceed from the characteristics and interests of the employee; focus on the creative nature of labor);

The principle of operator activity (it is assumed that the operator does not just process information, but acts);

The principle of designing activities (it is assumed that first it is necessary to design the activity of the person himself, and then the technical devices);

The principle of consistency (the work of an engineering psychologist is important at all stages: design, production and operation of the MCS);

The principle of complexity (the need to develop interdisciplinary links with other sciences)

Story

The American and British psychologists A. Chapanis, McFerdan, W. Garner, D. Bronbet and others initiated the creation of this trend. In Russia, the first studies of the engineering-psychological type were carried out in the twenties of the 20th century within the framework of labor psychology and psychotechnics.

In March 1957, at the All-Union meeting (conference) on the psychology of labor in Moscow, engineering psychology was defined as an independent field of research. In the same year, a laboratory of industrial psychology was created at the Institute under the direction of D. A. Oshanin.

The leading role in the organization and consolidation of work in engineering psychology was played by BF Lomov, who headed the laboratory of industrial (engineering) psychology created at Leningrad State University.

During 1960-1963. similar laboratories were set up at Moscow State University (headed by V. P. Zinchenko) and at the Scientific Research Institute of Technical Aesthetics (V. F. Venda). The laboratory of engineering psychology at the Institute of Psychology of the USSR Academy of Sciences was opened in 1973 on the initiative of B. F. Lomov and V. F. Rubakhin.

The Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences has developed an academic school of engineering psychology under the influence of ideas and active participation in the research work of B. F. Lomov, V. D. Nebylitsin, V. F. Rubakhin, Yu. M. Zabrodin, K. K. Platonov, V F. Venda, A. I. Galaktionov, and also in recent years - L. G. Dikoy, V. A. Vavilov, V. A. Bodrov.

IP Pavlov believed that the most effective means of reducing monotony was the desire to diversify nervous processes, emphasizing that in order to remove protective inhibition, it is necessary to expand the field of cortical activity.

Given these psychophysiological patterns, there are two possible ways to eliminate or reduce the negative consequences of monotony.

The first direction is a change in the organization of labor processes, leading to excessive fragmentation of the operations performed. In essence, this means that it is necessary to abandon such an organization of labor processes that leads to the emergence of monotonous labor. This radical way of combating monotony is associated with full, and not partial, mechanization and automation of production, robotization.

Robots are universal machines for performing mechanical actions. A model for them is the capabilities of a person performing physical work (Fig. 3.1).

Rice. 3. 1.

1 - robot; 2 - fixed fence; 3 - container with blanks

At the heart of the design of robots are human capabilities. The simplest model of robots consists of mechanical arms - manipulators and an automatic control device, including equipment for processing and storing information, as well as vehicles in the form of mechanical legs - pedipulators.

The development of robotics has gone through three stages. The first stage is the creation of robots with a rigid program and a well-defined sequence of operations. At the second stage, robots equipped with sensors were developed, which are its sensory system, which transmits information about the environment. Robots of the third generation are equipped with the so-called artificial intelligence, which is a computer that processes information from a sensory system.

So far, in domestic practice, robots of the first and second generation are mainly used in areas of monotonous heavy and hazardous work. These are the main operations of welding, riveting, assembly and painting of parts, maintenance of pressure machines, heating furnaces, stamping presses. They are also used for loading and unloading conveyor and automatic lines and other works. Currently, there are promising developments for the introduction of integrated and "flexible" automation, including the creation of automatic plants with a fundamentally new "unmanned" technology.

However, it is hardly possible to abandon the conveyor organization in the near future. Therefore, to prevent the negative consequences of monotony, another way is used - the development and implementation of social private events.

One of these activities is related to the reorganization of conveyor lines, which includes:

  • - change in the design of the conveyor line;
  • - replacement of the forced tempo by a free, self-adjustable one.

The essence of such a reorganization lies in the fact that long conveyor lines with a forced pace are replaced by short conveyor lines with a complete or partial transition from a given pace to a free one.

This way is widely used in the assembly of television and radio equipment. In the watch industry, for example, a production line is used to assemble wristwatches with workplaces equipped with 50 position mobile tables. The worker can set the rhythm of the automatic feed of the mechanisms himself, as well as either sequentially perform the same operation on 50 parts, or completely assemble one part and then move on to another. This ensures the relative freedom of the content, pace and rhythm of labor activity, and hence the reduction of the monotony of labor.

A similar method of combating the undesirable consequences of monotony is widely used abroad, in particular, at Philips TV manufacturing enterprises and Olivetti factories.

One important means of combating monotony is to adjust the speed of the conveyor in accordance with the fluctuations in the performance curve during the working day.

To substantiate this position, the Russian physiologist M.I. Vinogradov conducted numerous studies that showed that the best psychophysiological state of workers and a higher level of production indicators are observed in the following regimen. In the first half of the working day, the speed of movement is gradually increased in the initial 30-60 minutes of work, then a constant speed of the conveyor is maintained over the next one to two hours. And approximately 30 minutes before the lunch break, the speed of movement gradually slows down. In the second half of the working day, the course of the change in the conveyor speed curve remains the same, but, given the greater tediousness of labor in this period of time, the periods of gradual acceleration of work after lunch and its slowdown at the end of the shift become longer. It is desirable to take into account the phenomenon of "ultimate breakthrough". From a psychological point of view, it is necessary that the increase in pace be imperceptible to the worker, while its gradual slowdown must be noticeable so that the worker feels help by the end of the working day.

Another way to overcome monotony is the alternation (change) of work. The physiological mechanism for maintaining high performance while alternating work activities is the "Sechenov effect", which consists in the principle of substitution and compensation of psychological functions. This means that in monotonous work, schedules should be drawn up for the rotation of workers for various jobs (operations), so that the second work activates those muscle groups and, consequently, the centers of the cerebral cortex that were originally passive.

Since the occurrence of the monotony syndrome is associated with the formation of a simple working dynamic stereotype (RDS) among workers, one of the most important ways to combat monotony is to combine low-content operations into more complex and diverse ones in order to complicate the RDS. The decrease in fatigue in this case occurs due to the expansion of the field of cortical activity. But the use of such a direction requires compliance with the following conditions:

  • - the duration of the combined operations should not exceed 10-12 minutes, otherwise it will lead to a decrease in production indicators;
  • - excessive consolidation of operations may not correspond to the skill level of the employee;
  • - when combining professions, one should take into account the transfer (positive) and interference (negative) interaction of the skills of a new and combined profession;

when combining professions, various psychophysiological functions of an employee should be loaded.

A special place among the ways to combat the adverse effects of monotony has acquired the introduction of scientifically based work and rest regimes. This is explained by the fact that this method is applicable both for workers on the conveyor and for operators working with video terminals.

An important role in monotonous work is played by breaks during the working day, since with monotonous work, the need for rest increases sharply. It is believed that the most effective are short 5-7 minute breaks, which are introduced throughout the working day every hour - a maximum of one and a half. In the second half of the working day, special pauses are additionally introduced to reduce the influence of accumulated fatigue. The total value of short-term breaks and pauses should be at least 15-18% of the working time.

The use of breaks is also important. It is advisable to remove the fatigue caused by monotony in the rooms of psychological unloading. Active recreation usually includes industrial gymnastics based on the “Sechenov effect”, according to which muscles that are inactive in the labor process are loaded. For "computers" a set of exercises is used to relieve tension in the neck and shoulder girdle, lumbar and lower limbs.

To prevent the occurrence of negative psychological states (psychological satiety, boredom, drowsiness, apathy) among those working on monotonous work, functional music is included in the structure of the work and rest regimen, which stimulates motor activity and causes sthenic emotions in workers.

Another effective way to reduce the negative impact of monotony is the use of aesthetic methods during work, which improves the psychological working conditions and includes landscaping, color interiors, optimal workplace illumination, noise, vibration, dust and gas pollution reduction.

For monotonous work on the assembly line, the “psychological signals” method is used, based on the fact that the degree of retention in the memory of workers of the basic requirements for the operation performed varies during the work shift, clearly decreasing towards the end of the working day. The consequence of this is the deterioration of the quality indicators of manufactured products. Therefore, during the shift, small plates of different colors periodically move along the conveyor with instructions for completing the task, containing no more than five words, written in white oil paint. For each operation, a different color of the plate is used. Such a reminder acts through the appropriate analyzers and weakens the effect of the monotony of labor. The result is a reduction in scrap by up to 30%.

  • Belyalin P.P. Industrial robots. M.: Mashinostroenie, 1975.
  • Urazov VL Use of management methods in light industry. Moscow: Legprombytizdat, 1993.

Every person who wants to get a job that provides for it should know what it is - a monotonous job. But employers will also benefit from some information about how monotonous work should be organized, as well as what monotonous movement leads to in the course of employees' work. They will help to get acquainted with the main problems and illustrative examples of monotonous work.

Monotonous work - what is it, legal norms

Monotonous work is understood as such an activity during which an employee or just a person involved in its execution outside the framework of an employment relationship has to constantly be in an unchanged environment and repeat monotonous, repetitive movements. Most often, such work does not involve any difficulties or the involvement of thought processes in principle, due to which the payment for such work often does not correspond to the load.

Despite the seeming ease and the absence of visible problems, the constant performance of monotonous work is extremely difficult for the human psyche, which in the end invariably affects the physiological processes occurring in his body. Accordingly, any monotonous work should have certain breaks and intervals that will help get rid of the state of monotony.

The concept of monotony concerns not only labor activity, but defines the state of the psyche as a whole, when a person is in conditions of information starvation and is in an unchanged or repetitive environment, without the possibility of actively influencing its change.

From the point of view of labor legislation and labor protection, monotonous work was considered as a problem requiring certain solutions even during the USSR. Separate legal norms considering such activities are found in various recommendations and labor protection rules. Thus, the activities of some industries directly indicate to employers the need for certain measures to compensate for the impact of monotonous work. However, in the general case, monotonous work does not apply to harmful or dangerous working conditions, and the regulatory documents and acts relating to it are purely advisory, and not mandatory for use.

Monotonous work may not consist solely in the performance of physical work. So, psychologically monotonous work can also take place - for example, the activities of a cashier or a receptionist at an enterprise, or even a call center employee.

How monotonous work affects the employee

Monotonous work and monotonous movement generally have a negative impact on the worker - both from a psychological and physiological point of view. At the same time, scientific studies of this problem demonstrate that the resistance to such monotony in different people can vary greatly - for example, for some people, such work is absolutely normal, and for someone it is extremely undesirable. However, general statistical surveys show a positive attitude towards monotonous actions only in 3% of respondents. Such actions do not cause discomfort - 11% of respondents, and in 54% it causes a clear rejection.

Monotonous work causes a quick addiction to the implementation of the same actions, which significantly reduces labor efficiency - according to the results of an assessment of the labor activity of workers with piecework wages in monotonous industries, the first 2-3 hours of work account for more than 60% of effective labor, while the rest of the time is much less productive. In addition, such activity causes a stressful state, reduces concentration and reaction speed, which can lead to rather disastrous consequences in some activities.

But monotonous work also has certain positive aspects, due to which it is still in demand. The disadvantages and advantages of monotonous labor will be discussed in more detail later.

The key feature of monotony, as a state of slow reaction, fatigue and stress, in contrast to similar effects that appear under normal conditions, is its complete and rapid reversibility when the situation changes, which should be taken into account by both workers and their employers or direct supervisors.

Pros and cons of monotonous work

Before making a decision on employment for a monotonous job, you should familiarize yourself with its shortcomings, as they are extremely significant. Understanding them will also play into the hands of employers, because knowing the main problems they can be largely leveled. The key disadvantages of monotonous work are:

  • Significant decrease in labor efficiency. Regardless of the type of activity, such work causes a drop in the productivity of the worker in all its aspects. Accordingly, the fight against monotony can significantly increase the efficiency of the use of labor resources and achieve economic benefits without any additional costs.
  • High level of psychological stress. Employees working in monotonous conditions are subject to constant stress. And the effect of stress on the human body has now been studied quite well - it leads not only to a general depressed state of the psyche, but also significantly increases the likelihood of other disorders of a purely physiological nature, reduces immunity, which will eventually lead to more frequent sick leave.
  • Reducing the rate of reaction. As with fatigue, monotonous work can significantly reduce the speed at which an employee will react to any extraordinary situations. Accordingly, in a number of jobs associated with increased danger, the presence in labor of constant monotonous movements and an unchanged situation can lead to an increase in the frequency of accidents and worsening their consequences.
  • Physical exercise. Monotonous work is most often associated with direct increased physical activity. Even just maintaining one sitting position throughout the working day has a negative impact on health.
  • Lack of career growth prospects. For the workers themselves, this can also be a negative factor in monotonous work. Most often, such activities almost completely exclude the possibility of moving up the career ladder, since, in principle, it does not imply the manifestation of any extraordinary qualities or deeds, and does not imply opportunities for further professional development.

But monotonous work also has certain advantages that can be decisive when choosing a suitable job. The positive aspects of such activities include:

  • Minimum requirements for the applicant. Most jobs that involve monotony do not require any outstanding personal qualities. Accordingly, for employment, only minimal compliance with the formal requirements of the employer in terms of qualifications and education is required.
  • Lack of mental stress. Such activities most often do not involve any significant mental stress and decision-making. Accordingly, the employee has the opportunity to think about his own ideas and deeds without prejudice to work activities.
  • Positive psychological microclimate in the team. Due to the fact that monotonous work almost always does not require any complex actions and very quickly becomes familiar and automated, in order to get rid of boredom, employees communicate with each other much more actively and friendlier than in most other teams where there is no such negative factor influence.
  • Improving motor skills, stability and endurance. Due to monotonous work, a person most often develops fine motor skills, endurance and psychological stability, which can be useful for the development of personal qualities and subsequent employment.

Examples of monotonous work

The easiest way is to consider the concept of monotonous work on several of its illustrative examples, which will help to gain an understanding of how you can deal with the influence of such a negative factor. Examples of monotonous work can be the following:

In general, in almost every type of activity, work can one way or another, but in some of its aspects become monotonous, and the task of the employer is to avoid this. But the employee himself can influence this issue if he is provided with suitable conditions.


The criteria for the monotony of work in Russia have not been established, however, personnel management specialists and psychologists most often consider work to be monotonous if one or more of the following factors are present:
  • The completion of the main working steps takes no more than a minute.
  • The same actions are repeated more than 1000 times during the shift.
  • The work takes place under the same conditions in relation to the exterior and surrounding workers.

Recommendations for eliminating the negative impact of monotonous work

Workers and employees alike will benefit from knowing how to reduce or eliminate completely the impact of monotonous work and repetitive movements on work activities. For the employees themselves, the recommendations are quite simple:

  • If possible, you should take frequent but short breaks, at least for a few seconds, being distracted from work duties.
  • Communication with other employees can significantly reduce fatigue and get rid of boredom.
  • You should regularly change the position of the body and do a light warm-up if possible.
  • If it is possible to change the workplace without worsening working conditions, at least for a while, you should agree to such a transfer.

Employers, on the other hand, have much more control over and change working conditions. Possible measures to eliminate the negative impact of monotonous work include:

  • Providing breaks. Frequent, even if short, breaks significantly reduce the level of monotony of workers' work and can ultimately lead to increased productivity, even if they are included in working hours.
  • Personnel changes. The interchangeability of workers and the possibility of changing their activities is one of the most effective tools to combat the monotony of labor. The best example of this approach can be the organization of personnel management in McDonalds fast food restaurants - in fact, every type of activity in this restaurant is extremely monotonous, but all employees constantly change jobs and responsibilities, which ultimately allows you to get rid of monotonous work.
  • Carrying out various cultural events. Creating quality circles at the enterprise, stimulating interaction with other employees, setting bonuses for the best employees are good solutions to smooth out the negative aspects of monotonous work.
  • Loyal approach to employees. Most often, the main problem of monotonous work is the establishment of strict limits for employees and the abuse of administrative methods of influencing them, which ultimately have the opposite of the expected result.