Queensland State Archives posted a photo:
Strain Of Typing
Sickness Among Office Workers.
Typists are especially affected by ill-health, according to an article in a recent issue of “Industrial Welfare.”
In one large office the average number of days lost through sickness was ten for each women typist, as compared with 7.2 for each woman clerk.
As the result of a preliminary investigation the Industrial Welfare Society has formed these general conclusions as to the cause of abnormal sickness among typists:-
High speed and great concentration.
Monotony.
Noise of the typewriters.
Cramped position.
Faulty ventilation and heating of rooms.
Defects of eyesight.
Output Measured.
“The sickness referred to,” state the article, “is probably of the neurasthenic type, and this indicates the importance of concentration and speeding up as factors.
“Schemes of measuring the individual output of typists have been found to have harmful physical effects. The mere fact that a girl’s output is being measured is in itself sufficient to cause strain and worry