Abstract

Beauty parlour employees provide services to the public putting their own body at risk. They work in awkward posture and are also exposed to several chemicals. Due to improper posture and repetitive task, they may develop several musculoskeletal discomforts like Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs), Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI), Repeated Motions Injury (RMI) and Occupational Overuse Disorders (OODs) (Fang et al., 2007). Their work demand prolonged standing posture which contributes to numerous health effects such as work-related musculoskeletal disorders, chronic venous insufficiency, preterm birth and spontaneous abortion, and carotid atherosclerosis. However, those injuries can be minimized through application of engineering and administrative controls (Halim and Omar, 2011). In the light of above, present study had been conducted to analyse the work pattern and identify most frequent activity performed by the beauty parlour employees and conduct postural analysis of the most frequent activity. For conducting the study, 10 beauty parlours were selected near the area of research in Ludhiana and one respondent was randomly selected from each parlour. Results revealed that the employees were working for an extended period of 51 working hours per week which is much more than the recommended value of 40 hours per week (ILO, 1962). Among the different services offered, the most frequent was threading of eyebrows and upper lips, followed by waxing, hair cutting, facial, face cleanup and hair spa. Threading being the most frequent activity was selected for further postural analysis with the help of REBA. Results of REBA analysis revealed that the activity was highly risky, investigation was needed and change should be implemented.

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