FACULTY OF MEDICINE

COMMUNITY MEDICINE (MD4709)

COMMUNITY MEDICINE RESEARCH PROJECT
MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS AS A MAJOR CAUSE OF
SICKNESS ABSENCE
A CASE STUDY ON THE SUNGEI PALAS BOH TEA PLANTATION,
CAMERON HIGHLANDS

BY: MUHAMMAD ILMAN BIN MUDIN MBBS0913095

AINUL HAFIZAH BINTI ARIFFIN MBBS1212003

EZATUL AMIRA BINTI MOHD MAHAYALDIN MBBS1212004

AMIRAH BINTI ZAKARIA MBBS1212015

AINA BINTI ZAHARI MBBS0913087

Supervisors : Dr. Haji Masran bin Mohamad

Dato Dr. Pius Premaraj

CONTENT

TITLE PAGE

ABSTRACT. 2

INTRODUCTION.... 2 - 9

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 10

DATA ANALYSIS..... 11 - 35

DISCUSSION.... 36

CONCLUSION. 37-38

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.. 39

REFERENCES. 40

APPENDIX A: PICTURES.. 41 - 45

APPENDIX B: QUESTIONNAIRE.. 46 - 52

1
ABSTRACT
The present research project on Musculoskeletal Disorder Is A Major Cause Of Sickness Absence : A
case study on the Sungei Palas Boh Tea Plantation was a case-control study prepared on the basis of
information collected from the management and 85 workers of the Sungei Palas Boh Tea Plantation,
situated about 7.5 kilometers from Brinchang town. Among 85 workers, 39 (45.88%) are field workers,
22 (25.88%) are factory workers and the remaining 24 (28.24%) as categorize as others. The main
objectives of the study is to determine whether the musculoskeletal disorders is a major cause for
sickness absenteeism among the workers, by finding out the rate of absenteeism among the workers of
the tea plantation and also to study the other reasons for absenteeism among workers. The finding of
the study shows that the occurrence of musculoskeletal disorder was 63.5%. Out of which, 55.6% (30
person) was among the field workers, 27.8% (15 persons) from the factory workers and 16.7% (9
persons) are from the category listed as others. Out of 30 field workers who suffered from
musculoskeletal disorder, 16 persons (53.3%) contributed towards sickness absence. These findings
showed that musculoskeletal disorder is a major cause of sickness absenteeism among the field workers
in Boh Tea plantation.

INTRODUCTION
Musculoskeletal disorders are disorders or disease of the muscles, tendons, ligaments, peripheral
nerves, joints, cartilage and/or supporting vessels. The term disorder gives an indication of the
multifactorial nature of these conditions, which often develop from exposure to more than one risk
factor and do not always fit neatly into an injury or disease category. This group includes labels (and
colloquial terms) such as repetitive strain injuries, occupational overuse syndrome, back injury,
osteoarthritis, backache, sciatica, slipped disc, carpal; tunnel syndrome and others. Systemic
diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, gout, lupus and diabetes can also affect the musculoskeletal and
peripheral nerve tissues but are usually not work-related as so are not considered here.

Globally, musculoskeletal conditions are one of the leading causes of morbidity and disability, giving rise
to enormous healthcare expenditures and loss of work (WHO 2003), and reducing the quality of life of
affected employees and their families. Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) exert a
substantial economic burden in health care and compensation costs, lost salaries and productivity borne
not only by the employers and employees, but also by the community. As the conditions become more

2
serious and impinge on the persons functional capacity, their work performance and productivity are
also likely to decrease.

Absenteeism is defined as the failure of the worker to report for work when he is 'scheduled to work. A
worker is expected to work when the employer has work available for him and the worker is aware of it.
Authorized absence is also treated as absence while presence even for a part of the shift is treated as
presence for the whole shift. Absence on account of strikes, lockout, layoff, weekly rests or suspension is
not taken into account. Thus, it relates to only voluntary absence due to personal reasons of the
individual concerned. Absenteeism rates given in the report represent percentage of man days lost due
to absence to the corresponding total man days scheduled to work. The man days scheduled to work is
arrived at by adding the man days actually worked and the man days lost on account of absence of the
workers due to some reason or the other.

ABSENTEEISM

Absenteeism can be defined as Failure of employees to report for work when they are scheduled to
work. Absenteeism refers to voluntary non attendance at work, without valid reason. Absenteeism
means either habitual evasion of work, or willful absence as in a strike action. It does not include
involuntary or occasional absence due to valid causes, or reasons beyond ones control, such as
accidents or sickness.12

SICKNESS ABSENCE

Sickness absence, or as it can be defined more precisely, absence from work that is attributed to
sickness by the employee and accepted as such by the employer.13

One survey from United Kingdom has revealed a sickness absence rate of 2.2%, which translates to an
average of 5.1 sickness absence days per employee per year. The average days lost to sickness absence
has been fluctuating at around five days per employee (or a rate of 2.2%) for the past five years. Half of
employees (51%) continue to have no absence because of sickness, which has also been consistent over
the past four years5. Two-fifths of companies say that long-term sickness absence has increased over the
past two years. This is the largest reported increase in long-term sickness absence in the past five years.
The overall highestranked cause of long-term sickness is back problems and other musculoskeletal
disorders. Work related low back pain is a major ill health condition in Great Britain and across the EU
more generally. Typical low back pain has a recurrent course with fluctuating symptoms. The majority of

3
back pain patients will have experienced a previous episode and acute attacks often occur as
exacerbations of chronic low back pain.

Firms employing less than 50 employees ranked musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) as the most common
cause whereas companies employing more than 500 employees ranked stress and other mental ill
health disorders as the most common cause. Almost two-thirds (65%) of companies reported that they
have an absence target, which is an improvement over previous recent surveys. Of those that set a
target in 2014, just over half (55%) achieved it. Looking at the different occupational groups, those
working in the caring, leisure and other service occupations lost the highest percentage of hours to
sickness in 2013 at 3.2%. This group is dominated by women, who are more likely to have a spell of
sickness than men, which may explain why this group is highest. The lowest percentage of hours lost to
sickness was for managers, directors and senior officials at 1.3% in 2013. Sickness absences may be less
common in the managers, directors and senior officer occupation group as workers may not feel able to
take time off due to work commitments6.

The total number of working days lost due to cases of work-related ill health and workplace injuries has
generally followed a downward trend since the start of the last decade, but shows signs of 4tilizes off in
recent years. The estimated number of working days lost has fallen from around 39.5 million in 2000-02
to 27.3 million in 2014/15. In 2014/15, 23.3 million days were lost due to work-related ill health and 4.1
million due to workplace injuries. On average, each person suffering took around 15 days off work, 19
days for ill health cases and 6.7 for injuries. Stress, depression or anxiety and musculoskeletal disorders
accounted for the majority of days lost due to work-related ill health, 9.9 and 9.5 million days
respectively. The average days lost per case for stress, depression or anxiety (23 days) was higher than
for musculoskeletal disorders (17 days)7.

THE REASONS FOR ABSENTEEISM

Several factors contribute towards absenteeism such as work, management, social factors, and illness.
The phenomenon of absenteeism has been explained in various ways. The atmosphere prevailing in a
plant, therefore, affects his attitude to work, and either persuades him to attend work regularly or keeps
him away from works. The attitude and practice of the management towards the workers also
contributes to absenteeism. This study was conducted to determine whether musculoskeletal disorder
was a major contributory factor towards sickness absence

4
CAUSES OF SICKNESS ABSENCE AND ABSENTEEISM11

The other general causes of the absenteeism are:

1.Medical illness/ injury:

Out of the major causes of absenteeism is sickness absence, is due to illness/injury or other medically
related issues (sickness absenteeism).

2. Maladjustment with the working conditions:

If the working conditions of the company are poor, the workers cannot adjust themselves with the
companys working conditions. Then they prefer to stay away from the company.

3. Social and religious ceremonies:

Social & religious functions divert the workers attention from the work.

4. Unhealthy working conditions:

The poor and intolerable working conditions in the factories irritate the working excess heat, noise,
either too much or too low lighting, poor ventilation, dust, smoke cause poor health of the workers. This
factory causes the workers to be absent.

5. Poor welfare facilities:

Though a number of legislation concerning welfare facility are enacted, many organizations fail to
provide welfare facilities. This is either due to the poor financial position of the companies (or) due to
the exploitative attitude of the employs. The welfare facilities includes poor sanitation, washing, bathing
first aid appliances, ambulance, restrooms drinking water, canteen, shelter, crches etc. The dissatisfied
worker with these facilities prefers to be away from the workplace.

6. Alcoholism:

Workers mostly prefer to spend money on the consumption of liquor and enjoyment after getting the
wages. Therefore, the rate of absenteeism is more during the first week every month.

5
7. Indebtness:

The low level wages and unplanned expenditure of the workers force then to borrow heavily. The
research studies indicate that workers borrow more than 10 times of their net pay. Consequently
workers fail to repay the money. Then they try to escape the place in order to avoid the money lenders.
This leads to absenteeism.

8. Maladjustment with job demands:

The fast enhancing technology demand higher level skills from the workers fail to meet these demands
due to their lower level education and/or absenteeism of training.

9. Unsound personnel policies:

The improper and unrealistic personnel policies result in employee dissatisfaction. The dissatisfied
employee in tune prefers to be away from the work.

10. Low level of wages:

Workers Wages in some organizations are very poor and they are quite inadequate to meet the basic
needs of the employees. Therefore, employers go for other employment during their busy seasons and
earn more money. Further, some employees take up part time jobs. Thus the employees resort to
moonlighting and absent themselves from the work.

MEASURES TO CONTROL SICKNESS ABSENTEEISM4

Measure that could be taken to control sickness absence i.e. absenteeism due to illness/injury
is to have pre-employment and periodic medical examination for the workers and also to have
an effective safety committee.

Adoption of a well defined recruitment procedure

Cordial relationship between supervisors and workers

Provision of reasonable wages and allowances and job security for workers

Motivation of workers and social measures

Improved communication and prompt redressal of grievances

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 Liberal grant of leave

Safety and accident prevention

Provision of healthy and hygienic working conditions

Development of workers education

CALCULATION OF THE RATE OF ABSENTEEISM11

The Rate of Absenteeism can be calculated with the help of the following formula prescribed by the U.S.
Department of labour.

Absenteeism rate = Number of Man-days lost 100 Number of Man-days worked + Number of Man-
days lost.

Absenteeism rate can be calculated for different employees and for different time periods like days,
months & years.

BOH Plantations9,10

BOH Plantations is the largest black tea manufacturer in Malaysia, with both domestic and international
distribution owned by BOH Plantations Sdn Bhd. The BOH Tea Plantation, which is located at Cameron
Highlands, Pahang, Malaysia is also the largest tea plantation in Malaysia8. BOH Plantations was founded
in 1929 by J.A. Russel, a British businessman during the British colonial era in Malaya. He was optimistic
of the tea plantation business due to huge demands despite of the world-wide Great Depression at that
time. As a result of the potential, he applied for and was granted a concession of land for his first tea
garden in Habu, Cameron Highlands. Today, BOH Plantations owns three tea gardens the first garden
in Habu, Fairlie Tea Garden and Sungai Palas Tea Garden. To ensure the freshness of its tea products,
BOH Plantations also set up a packaging factory near its main garden. 9

BOH Plantations Sdn Bhd is the leading tea grower in Malaysia with four tea gardens Boh, Sungei Palas
and Fairlie situated in Cameron Highlands; and Bukit Cheeding in Selangor constituting a total land
area of 1200 hectares. With a production capacity approaching 3000kgs per hectare, the company
produces 4 million kgs of tea annually which translates to about 5.5 million cups per day 10. This
represents about 70% of all tea produced in Malaysia. BOH dominates the domestic retail market. While
maintaining its market position locally, the company is also expanding into foreign niche markets. Today

7
BOH exports its brand of prime grade teas to various countries including the USA, United Arab Emirates,
Japan, Singapore and Brunei.

The company is one of the few vertically-integrated tea companies in the world. It has operations
ranging the entire spectrum of tea manufacture from cultivation and processing to the packaging and
marketing of its wide range of locally grown robust black teas. BOHs operations are 8tilizes8d while
application of fertilisers is carried out aerially and harvesting is done by hand-held machines or raised
tractor harvesters. Each of BOHs tea gardens has its own processing facility and the Fairlie tea garden
8tilizes some of the most modern machines in the world. BOH also packs all its tea at its packing facility
in Bukit Cheeding. In keeping with its commitment to quality, BOH conducts long-term research and
development to ensure that only the best tea clones are cultivated. In-house tea quality teams are at
hand to ensure that strict quality requirements are met at every level of processing.

BOH emerged as winner of the Superbrand Excellence Trophy award in Food & Beverage category in
2004. As an acknowledgement of its excellent brand identity, BOH received the National Creativity &
Innovation Award from Malaysia Design Technology Centre. Today, BOH is the Number One brand of tea
in Malaysia. Yet, the Company is not one to rest on its laurels. BOH keeps abreast of its evolving
consumer demographic and industry trends while continuing to produce distinctive teas for both
domestic and international customers. As a household tea brand, BOH also believes in playing an active
role in the community and is a keen supporter of the local performing arts scene. The Company is also
an advocate for animal and environmental conservation.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The problem of musculoskeletal disorders contributing to the sickness absence among the tea
plantation workers is a major problem affecting the tea plantation company. To have an in-depth
knowledge of this problem and thereby to suggest ways and means to reduce the problem, the present
study, Musculoskeletal Disorder Is a Major Cause of Sickness Absence: A case study on the Sungei Palas
Boh Tea Plantation has been taken up.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The scope of the present project work is limited to the 137 tea garden workers of the Sungei Palas Boh
Tea Plantation, Cameron Highland.

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OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1) To study whether the musculoskeletal disorders is a major cause for sickness absenteeism
among the workers

1.1 To study the extent of the problems of the musculoskeletal disorder

1.2 To study the various causes of absenteeism with special reference to sickness absenteeism.

9
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

DATA COLLECTION

The study was conducted among 85 (constituting 70.8%) tea plantation workers of the Sungei Palas Boh
Tea Plantation, Cameron Highland situated 7.5 km from Brinchang town. The work profile of these
workers varies, being involved in plucking, pruning, pesticide spraying, supervising plantation activities,
carrying leaves/loads for the field workers as well as those who are working in the factory and the
administration office. The present study required the use of both primary data and secondary data.
Primary data were collected using a structures questionnaire designed by the researchers. A detailed
questionnaire was prepared to obtain information on demography, job profile, monthly wages,
frequency of leave per month, personal habits, alcohol intake and job satisfaction. On the subject of
health, specific questions were asked on musculoskeletal disorders. Questions on personal problem,
family problem and medical conditions were also included in the questionnaire. Secondary data needed
for the study were collected through desk research.

PRIMARY DATA

The study was mainly based on primary data. The questionnaires were distributed among the workers.
Before collecting the primary data, personal interviews were held with officers and employees of the
company to collect the information required.

SECONDARY DATA

The required secondary data have been also collected from reports, official records, journals, and the
internet. The collected data have been presented in the forms of simple tables, diagrams.

10
DATA ANALYSIS

Demographic

The study was done in Sungei Palas Boh Tea Plantation Sdn. Bhd. With total workers of 137. Out
of 137 workers, we managed to apply the questionnaire to 85 respondents (62%).

Age Number Percentage %

<20 4 4.7%

21-30 39 45.9%

31-40 19 22.4%

41-50 16 18.8%

51-60 5 5.9%

>60 2 2.4%

Total 85 100%

Table 1: Distribution of workers based on age group.

Figure 1: Percentage based on age group.

The 85 samples have been classified according to their ages. Majority of the workers (45.9%) are
within 21-30 years of age, followed by 22.4% of workers in the age group of 31-40 years. Only 4 (four)
workers age of 20 years and below have been found and 2 workers are above 60 years old.

Gender
Number Percentage
%

Female 22 25.9%

Male 63 74.1%

Total 85 100%

Table 2: Distribution of respondents based on

gender
FIGURE 2: Gender Distribution

Based on the figure above, a total of 63 males; 74.1% and 22 females; 25.9% were interviewed.

11
 Figure 3: Distribution of respondent based on nationality

Figure 3 shows that 45.9% (39) are local and 54.1% (46) are migrants. Most of the migrants
came from Indonesia, Bangladesh and Nepal. Out of 39 local workers, 24 are Indians and 15 are Malays.

Table 3: Distribution of local workers based on the race

Based on Table 3, most of the local workers are Indians which made up of 24 respondents and
followed by Malays, 15 respondents. Others in the table refers to foreign workers which are mostly
from Indonesia, Bangladesh and Nepal.

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 Table 4: Marital status of respondents

Table 4 shows that out of 85 workers, 58 are married and 25 workers are in the
unmarried/single category. The remaining two of the workers are divorcee.

13
Job profile

Distribution of respondent based on their job profile

50
45.88
45
40
35
Percentage (%)

30 28.24
25.88
25
20 Percentage (%)

15
10
5
0
Field worker Factory worker Others
Type of job

Figure 4: Distribution of respondent based on their job profile

The figure shows that the tea plantation is mostly filled with field workers which are 39 (45.88%)
of the respondents. The factory workers that made up of 22 (25.88%) and the rest 24 (28.24%) of the
respondents categorizes under others.

*Works explanations

Job Scope
Field worker -Tea harvester: Their job is the toughest which involves requirement of high
energy to climb up and down the hill to pluck the tea leaves and bring them
to the collection area. They are using appliance to pluck the tea leaves.
-Field supervisor: They are the boss to the tea harvester.
-Field conductor: They manage the supervisor and tea harvesters job daily.
-Pesticide sprayer and trimmer for the tea plantation
Factory Worker Factory workers need some skills to operate the machine but their job is not
tiring because it is just involving in handling the machines for tea leaves
processing.
Others -General workers: They work in the tea shop, caf
-Administration: They work in the office and involve in the management part

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 Figure 5: Pie chart for job profile showing either permanent or temporary worker

Based on the Figure 5, most of the workers at the tea plantation are permanent workers
which made up of 77 (90.59%) respondents. They are mostly from Bangladesh and Nepal. For
the temporary workers, they made up of 8 (9.41%) respondents and most of them from
Indonesia.

Job
Factory Others Field worker Total
Worker
Count Count Count Count Percentage (%)
Permanent 22 16 39 77 90.59%
Worker
Temporary 0 8 0 8 9.41%
Worker
Total 22 24 39 85 100%
Table 5: Job profile by category of worker

Based on table above, all of field and factory workers are permanent workers whereas 8
out of 24 workers under others category are temporary workers.

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 Distribution of respondents as based on
working hours

34.10% 8 hours and below

> 8 hours
65.90%

Figure 6: Distribution of respondents based on working hours

Figure 6 shows that 56 (65.9%) of the respondents working for approximately eight
hours and below a day from 7.30 am to 3.30 pm. 29 (34.1%) of the respondents work for more
than 8 hours per day and mostly they work overtime.

Job

Factory Worker Others Field worker Total

Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage

% % % %
Working 8 hours 22 100% 20 83.4% 14 35.9% 56 65.9%
Hour and
below
>8 0 0.0% 4 16.7% 25 64.1% 29 34.1%
hours
Total 22 100.0% 24 100.0% 39 100.0% 85 100.0%

Table 6: Relation between job profile and working hour

Based on the table above, most of the field workers work more than 8 hours which is 25 people (64.1%)
out of 39 people. Long hours of work/ overtime work can put a strain on individuals that lead to

16
musculoskeletal disorder. Among the working group, field worker dominating the overtime work (more
than 8 hour) with 25 over 29 persons.

Figure 7: Distribution of respondent based on working experience

Figure 7 shows that out of 85 workers, 27 (31.76%) have been working less than a year
in the tea plantation, 41 (48.24%) for 1-10 years, 10 (11.76%) for 11-20 years, 3 (3.53%) for 21-
30 years, 1 (1.2%) for 31-40 years and 3 (3.53%) for more than 40 years.

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Distribution of musculoskeletal disorder by working category and years of service

Musculoskeletal Working experience

Disorders Based on
Working Experience &
<1 year 1-10 11-20 >20 TOTAL
Job Profile
years years years

J Factory Permanent 4 7 3 1 15
o Worker Worker
b s Temporary 0 0 0 0 0
Worker
Others Permanent 1 4 0 1 6
Worker
Temporary 3 0 0 0 3
Worker
Field Permanent 9 21 0 0 30
workers Worker
Temporary 0 0 0 0 0
Worker
TOTAL 17 32 3 2 54

Table 7: Relation between working experience and musculoskeletal disorder by different

workers group

54 (63.52%) is the total number of workers out of 85 respondents at Boh tea plantation suffered
from musculoskeletal disorder. Out of which 63.5%, 30 (55.56%) was among the field workers, 15
(27.78%) from factory workers and 9 (16.67 %) are from the category listed as others.

15 persons of factory workers have complained of musculoskeletal disorder. Majority of them,

14 persons (93.33%) have working experience for less than 20 years.

All of the 30 field workers who complained of musculoskeletal disorder, have working
experience less than 20 years.

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 Figure 8: Monthly income of the respondents

Based on figure 8, out of 85 workers, 47 (55.29%) of the respondents have monthly

income less than RM1000. They are mostly the field workers. 33 (38.82%) of the respondents
have monthly income between RM1001-RM2000 which including mandores, conductors and
the workers that are doing the overtime work. 4 (4.71%) of the respondent have monthly
income between RM2001-RM3000 and 1 (1.18%) of the respondent have monthly income
more than RM3000.

Frequency of Leave
< 1 2-3 4-5 >5 days Total
days days days
Count Count Count Count Count
Monthly <RM1 000 38 6 3 0 47
Income RM1001- 26 7 0 0 33
RM2000
RM2001-3000 2 1 1 0 4
>3001 1 0 0 0 1
Total 67 14 4 0 85
Table 8: Monthly income versus frequency of leave among the respondents

Table 5 shows that respondents with lowest income take more leaves. There are 47
respondents out of 85 with monthly income less than RM1000 take leave and it is followed by
33 respondents who have monthly income between RM1001 to RM2000. So, it is safe to say
that the lower the income, the more amount of leaves take by the workers. This may be due to
the heavy work load but with so little pay.

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 Figure 9: Insurance among workers

Figure 8 shows that 42 (49.4%) of the respondents have work insurance while other 43
(50.6%) do not have insurance. Majority of the migrants do not have insurance.

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Absenteeism inclusive of sickness absenteeism

Trend of absenteeism in Boh Tea Plantation

Percentage%

Figure 10: Rate of Absenteeism from 2011 to 2015

Rate of absenteeism from January 2016 to April 2016

Percentage%

Figure 11: Rate of Absenteeism from January 2016 to April 2016 for local and foreign workers

The above graphs (figure 10 and 11) are the secondary data that we collected from the
management office. Those graphs for the period 2011 to 2014 show that there is an increasing trend in
the rate of absenteeism followed by sudden drop of absenteeism among the tea plantation workers in
2015 because of some intervention from management. The average absenteeism rate in 2016 (January
to April) is approximately 2%.

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 Absenteeism (April 2016) Count
0 days 35
1 days 32
2-3 days 14
4-5 days 4
Frequency of Leave >5 days 0
Total 85
Absenteeism
(Leave for 1 days and 50
above)
Table 9: Absenteeism in May 2016.

Table 9 shows that 50 workers from total of 85 have taken leave due to many causes in April
2016. 32 of them take one day leave, 14 take 2-3 days leave, and 4 workers take 4-5 days leave.

*The table above is count as the absenteeism for one month.

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MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDER
Number of respondents associated with musculoskeletal disorder

45

40

35

30

25 WITH MUSCULOSKELETAL
30 DISORDER
20 9 WITHOUT MUSCULOSKELETAL
DISORDER
15 15
10
15
5
7 9
0
FACTORY WORKER OTHERS FIELD WORKERS

Figure 12: Number of respondents associated with musculoskeletal disorder

WITHOUT WITH MUSCULOSKELETAL

MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDER
DISORDER
Number Percentage Number Percentage
% %
FACTORY WORKER 7 8.24 15 17.65
OTHERS 15 17.65 9 10.59
FIELD WORKERS 9 10.59 30 35.28
TOTAL 31 36.48 54 63.52
Table 10: Number of respondents associated with musculoskeletal disorder

Based on the table above, 54 from 85 of the respondents complained of musculoskeletal

disorder. It shows that the occurrence of musculoskeletal disorder is 63.5%. Out of which, 55.6% (30
person) are among the field workers, 27.8% (15 persons) from the factory workers and 16.7% (9
persons) are from the category listed as others.

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Medical leave due to pain (musculoskeletal disorder) in the past 4 months among 54 respondents.

Medical Leave due to pain (musculoskeletal

disorder) in the past 4 months
80.00%

70.00%

60.00% 68.50%
50.00%

40.00%
PERCENTAGE %
30.00%

20.00%
31.50%
10.00%

0.00%
YES NO

Figure 13: Percentage for respondents who take medical leave due to pain (musculoskeletal
disorder) in the past 4 months (January - April 2016)

Figure above shows the percentage of medical leave due to musculoskeletal disorder in
past 4 months based on questionnaire that have been distributed to the respondents. Figure 13
showing 17 (31.5%) of the respondents do not take medical leave for the past 4 months
whereas 37 (68.5 %) take medical leave for the past 4 months.

*Medical leave due to pain (musculoskeletal disorders) in the past 4 months here means the
workers have taken medical leave every month (with leave certificate from the doctors) at least
for one day during the period of last 4 months. However, the limitation here is the frequency of
leave from the data collected is only for April 2016.

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 Medical Leave due to pain (musculoskeletal
disorder) in the past 4 months

Number of YES NO
respondent with Number Percentage Number Percentage
musculoskeletal
disorder (%) (%)

Job Factory Worker 15 14 25.9% 1 1.9%

Others 9 7 13.0% 2 3.7%
Field worker 30 16 29.6% 14 25.9%
Total 54 37 68.5% 17 31.5%
Table 11: Distribution of medical leave took by respondent due to pain (musculoskeletal
disorder) in the past 4 months based on working category.

Total number of respondents that complained of musculoskeletal disorder is 54

respondents. Based on the table above, among 30 person from field workers, 16 (29.6%) of
them took leave due to musculoskeletal disorder in the past 4 months. 14 (25.9%) of factory
workers took medical leaves due to pain (musculoskeletal disorder).

FIELD WORKERS

Medical leave due to pain (musculoskeletal disorder) in the past four months (Jan- April 2016)

Percentage % Number

YES 53.33% 16

NO 46.67% 14

Distribution of medical leaves among field workers who complained of musculoskeletal

disorder

25
 PERCENTAGE (%)
55
50
PERCENTAGE
45 (%)
40
YES NO

Figure 14: Medical leaves among field workers who complained of musculoskeletal disorder

53.33% (16 people) of the field worker took medical leave due to musculoskeletal disorder.

Distribution of musculoskeletal disorder among all workers in the last 12 months

Percentage of respondents with pain in the

body parts for the past 12 months
100%

80% 86.70%
60%

40% percentage %

20%
13% 0.00%
0%
Everyday < 30 days > 30 days

Figure 15: Percentage of respondents with pain in the body parts for the past 12 months.

There are 30 respondents that complained of musculoskeletal disorder among field

worker. Based on the figure above, 26 (86.7%) of the respondents complained of having pain in
any part of the body for less than 30 days whereas 4 (4.71%) of the respondents complained
that pain was present every day. No respondent complained of having pain in any body parts
lasting for more than 30 days.

26
FIELD WORKERS

DAY NUMBER OF WORKERS PERCENTAGE (%)

Less than 30 days 26 86.7

More than 30 days 0 0

EVERYDAY 4 13.3

TABLE 12: Pain in any body part for the past 12 months

27
MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS BY ANATOMICAL SITE AMONG WORKERS

Job

Factory others Field Total Percentage

Worker worker total (%)
Number Number Number
Number

Neck 5 2 10 17 20.0%

Shoulder 7 0 15 22 25.9%
Upper Back 1 0 2 3 3.5%
Elbows 1 0 7 8 9.4%
Low Back 13 2 21 36 42.4%
Wrists/Hands 1 1 7 9 10.6%
Hips/Thighs/Bu 0 1 4 5 5.9%
ttocks

Knees 1 1 9 11 12.9%
Ankles/Feet 3 7 1 11 12.9%
32 14 76

Table 13: Musculoskeletal Disorders among the workers based on category of work done

All the workers were expected to endure some repetitive traumas due to the mechanical nature
of work. The anatomical site affected might vary according to the nature of work, the duration of work,
and the physical conditions of work. Again, the emphasis was to ascertain the percentage of workers
experiencing these various symptoms, rather than to judge them on the scale of severity.

Table 11 shows the aggregate percentage. As the table indicates, for factory worker, low back
pain has higher percentage, 13(15.3%,) followed by shoulder pain, which is 7 (8.2%) and the third most
common pain complaint by factory worker is neck pain which is 5 (5.9%). Field workers also complaint of
low back pain as the major problems in musculoskeletal disorder which is, 21 (24.7%), followed by
shoulder pain, 15( 17.6%) and neck pain 10(11.8%). However, for the general workers, the ankle or feet
pain have higher percentage, 7(8.2%), followed by neck and back pain, which are 2 (2.4%.). Based on the
findings, low back pain seems to be most common musculoskeletal disorder among workers which 36
(42.4%). Many studies report associations between low back pain and whole body vibrations, difficult

28
working positions such as frequent bending and twisting and heavy lifting. Majority field and factory
workers complaint of low back pain because their job require heavy lifting and frequent bending.

Picture 1: Straining of the neck, back, arms and shoulders, and legs while carrying a load of 30-
40 kilograms for a distance of four kilometers climbing up and down the hills.

Picture 2: Straining the neck, back, arms and shoulders, and legs during pruning

29
 Picture 3: Straining the neck, back, arms and shoulders, and legs during plucking

Working Hour
<8 8 hours >8 Total
hours hours
Number Number Number Number
Frequency of <1 days 5 37 25 67
Leave 2-3 1 9 4 14
days
4-5 1 3 0 4
days
>5 days 0 0 0 0
Total 7 49 29 85

Table 14: Relation between Working hours and Absenteeism

The above table shows relation between frequency of leave per month and working hours of
workers. Based on this table, workers who work less than 8 hours have fewer tendencies to take leave
more than 2 days. 43.5% from workers who working for 8 hours takes one day or less of leave per
month. For workers who work more than 8 hours, majority of them, which is 29.4% take less than one
day and, 4.7% take 2-3 days leave per month.

30
 Sickness Absence due to
Musculoskeletal Disorders

Sickness Absence due

to Minor Illness and
other causes of
absenteeism

Figure 16: Causes of Absenteeism

50 workers have absent (leave for one day and above in April 2016) due to many causes. Based
on Figure 16, most of the workers were absent due to Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD) which are 37
(74%) and 13 (26%) of the workers were absent due to minor illnesses and other causes.

Both sickness absence due to minor illness (Figure 17) and other causes of absenteeism (Table
16) cannot be calculated and specified to what causes due to insufficient data.

31
 Figure 17: Complaint of minor illness among workers

Figure 16 show that other problems such as headache, dizziness, stomachache have the highest
percentage with 22.27% of the respondents. Allergic, snake bites, and diseases of the eye, ear and skin
have the lowest percentage of the minor illness with 1.42% of the respondents.

*Minor illness in Figure 17 is taken roughly from the workers without specific period of time.

32
 OTHER PROBLEMS
Responses Percent of Cases
N Percent
Work-related Injury 25 26.9% 38.5%
Stress/anxiety/depression 9 9.7% 13.8%

Medical Condition 11 11.8% 16.9%

Family Responsibility 18 19.4% 27.7%
Accident not related to work 3 3.2% 4.6%

Pregnancy 9 9.7% 13.8%

No reason for leave 18 19.4% 27.7%
Total 93 100.0% 143.1%

Table 15: Other problems that cause absenteeism among workers

Based on the table above, work-related injury has the highest percentage for other problems
that causes workers to take leave with 26.9% of the respondents. 19.4% of the respondents complaint
of family responsibility and no reason that cause them to take leave. 11.8% of the respondents take
leave due to medical problems such as monthly appointment, such as diabetic and hypertension,
physiotherapy, or who undergoes surgical procedure. While the accidents that are not related work has
the lowest percentage which is 3.2%.

Some of the other causes apart from musculoskeletal disorder that contributed to sickness
absence are shown in the table above. 26.9% had work related injury that contributed to sickness
absence with 11.8% due to their medical condition. Absenteeism due to family commitments
contributed to 19.4% with unexplained leave amounting to 19.4%.

*Other Problems in Table 15 above is taken roughly from the workers without specific period of time.

33
 OTHER CAUSES OF Responses
ABSENTEEISM
Number Percent

Family Problem 14 28.0%

Personal Problem 9 18.0%

Religious matter 1 2.0%

None of the above 26 52.0%

Total 50 100.0%

Table 16: Social problems that cause absenteeism among workers (monthly)

Based on the table above, respondents that did not take any leave due to social problems
account for 26 (52.0%). The respondents that take leave due to family problems is 14 (28.0%) of the
respondents, then personal problems 9 (18.0%) of the respondents. Respondents with religious matter
make the lowest percentage which is 2.0 %.
Majority of the respondents; 87.1% (74) mentioned that they did not take any alcohol and the
rest of the respondents; 12.9% (11) occasionally consume alcohol. Therefore, alcoholism is not an issue
that can contribute to the absenteeism at Boh tea plantation.

*Other causes in Table 16 above is taken roughly from the workers without specific period of time.

Opinion about job

Heavy Uneven Poor Others Non of the Total
workload terrain working above
climate
Number Number Number Number Number Number
Job Factory 6 0 0 5 11 22
Workers
Others 1 4 9 2 8 24
Field Workers 19 13 7 0 0 39
Total 26 17 16 7 19 85
Table 17: Opinion about their job

34
 Based on table above, for field workers, 19 of the respondents complained of heavy workload,
because most of them need to carry 30-40 kg of load. 13 of the respondents complained of poor uneven
terrain, followed by 7 of the respondents complained of poor working climate.

19 of the respondents have no complaint about their work. Most of the complaints are from the
field workers due to the heavy workload.

Job satisfaction Field workers Factory workers Others

Satisfied 29 21 24

Not satisfied 10 1 0

Total 39 22 24

Table 18: Satisfaction regarding the job

According to the figure above, approximately 84.7% of the respondents are satisfied with their
job, and the remaining 15.3% of the respondents are not satisfied with their job.

Job satisfaction Number of respondents Percentage %

Satisfied 29 74.4%

Not satisfied 10 25.6%

Total 39 100%

Table 19: Job satisfaction among field workers

25.6% among the field worker are not satisfied with their job. It is due to heavy workload,
uneven terrain and accommodation. It shows that tea leaves harvesting is the most difficult and tiring

job among the other jobs as well as it consumes so much energy of the workers.

35
DISCUSSION

The occurrence of musculoskeletal disorder is about 54 (63.5%) of the workers out of 85. Out of
54 workers (63.5%), 55.6% (30 persons) from the field workers, 27.8% (15 persons) from the factory
workers and 16.7% (9 persons) are from others category. Among the 30 persons of the field workers
that suffer from musculoskeletal disorder, 16 people (53.3%) contributed to the sickness absence.

The group that mainly affected due to the musculoskeletal disorder is the field workers since
their job is the toughest and the most tiring, which involve requirement of high energy to climb up and
down the hill, to pluck the tea leaves and bring them to the collection area.

Other causes of sickness absence are due to minor illnesses such as fever, flu, diarrhea, and
others, based on Figure 16.

Hence, based on the study, we can say that musculoskeletal disorder is the main reason that
contributes to the sickness absence in the Boh Tea Plantation.

Based on the study, social problem (Table 16) is not a major cause of absenteeism. In addition,
alcoholism is not an issue that contributes to the absenteeism in Boh Tea Plantation.

Regarding the job satisfaction among the field workers, some of them which are 10 out of 39 are
not satisfied with their work. Heavy workload as well as poor working climate might be the reasons for
their dissatisfaction. Some of them also complaint of inadequate payment compared to their job.

However, the previous years showed that there is decrease in the rate of absenteeism in 2015
compared to 2011 until 2014. It might be due to improvement of management in 2015.

The limitation of this study, based on the available data, certain percentage do not have official
sick leave which are not properly documented, which will increase the rate of sickness absence. Minor
illness and other causes of absenteeism are also not well collected to a specified period of time.

36
CONCLUSION

Regarding to our study, we noticed that the occurrence of musculoskeletal disorder is about 63.5% of
the workers and out of 63.5%, 55.6% (30 persons) from the field workers, 27.8% (15 persons) from the
factory workers and 16.7% (9 persons) are from others category. Among the 30 persons of the field
workers that suffer from musculoskeletal disorder, 16 people (53.3%) contributed to the sickness
absence.

The study shows that musculoskeletal disorder as a major cause of sickness absence.

Based on our findings, a few suggestions and recommendations have been made to the management of
the Boh tea plantation in order to assist them in reducing the absenteeism due to musculoskeletal
disorder among the workers.

1. The management can introduce ergonomic interventions to reduce musculoskeletal disorders

among the workers engaged in tea fields. The application of improved technologies/tools
considering ergonomic principles will significantly decrease the physiological cost of work of
selected activity over existing tools leading to increased output and better work efficiency.
2. Low back pain is the most common cause of musculoskeletal disorder which might be due to
heavy physical activity. Therefore, use of zip line for tea leaves collecting and transportation is
applicable to reduce musculoskeletal disorders. Workers must adopt proper postures when
handling loads and they must take required rest breaks.
3. The best and simplest way to reduce absenteeism is providing counseling to those employees
who take leave unnecessarily and making them aware of the problems of absenteeism and their
importance at the work place.
4. Job placement: Through administrative control, they can place workers with musculoskeletal
disorder to area or workplace where there is less stress on their body or no exposure to risk
factors that can worsen their condition.
5. The management's strict attitude in granting leave even when the need is genuine tempts the
workers to go on leave though on loss of pay. Hence an effective way of dealing with
absenteeism is to liberalize leave rules.
6. The rules and regulation related to attendance must be explained to workers. In order to reduce
work load, the management must appoint sufficient employees. The existing employees can

37
 work better without any stress or strain and by this absenteeism due to musculoskeletal
disorder can be reduced.
7. The management should provide a financial incentive for improving the economic conditions of
the workers working in the plantation.
8. Educate all the workers to use personal protective equipment to reduce occupational injury that
might contribute to the sickness absence.
9. Pre-employed and periodic medical examination: The standard of medical facilities in the
company could be improved and regular health check-ups of the workers should be performed.
10. Awareness should be raised among the workers regarding musculoskeletal disorder by giving
health education about the problem and how to prevent it.
11. Establish of a safety committee is essential to reduce sickness absence in which the
management at BOH Tea Plantation have initiated.

38
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This project work is a result of inspiration, encouragement and co-operation of many persons associated
with it. In this regard, at first we would like to offer our sincere gratitude and heartiest thanks to our
supervisor Dr. Haji Masran bin Mohamad, Dean of Faculty of Medicine, University College Shahputra and
for the continuous guidance and support of our study and related research, for his patience, motivation,
and immense knowledge. During the course of our study, he was always there to help us out for which
act of kindness we shall remain indebted to him. Words of special appreciation and thankfulness and
deepest sense of gratitude to Dato Dr. Pius Premaraj, lecturer of Community Medicine for his untiring
and generous help, encouragement, valuable guidance, kind advices and essential suggestions whenever
we approached him.

We would also like to express our thankfulness to the Sungei Palas Boh Tea Plantation workers without
whose interview the project would not have been completed. We would offer our heartfelt thanks to
the manager of the tea plantation; Mr. Khairil Anwar, factory supervisor; Mr. Kannesan, factory
technician; Mr. Mat Yuseri, field conductor; Mr. Sivan, Madam Aziyan as medical assistant and the other
office staff members of the Sungei Palas Boh Tea Plantation for allowing us to go through their official
records for data collection which were of great help for the study.

Special thanks as well to all the group members for the stimulating discussions, for the sleepless nights
we were working together before deadlines, and for all the fun we have had in Cameron Highlands and
the rest of the weeks during the community medicine posting. We would also like to thank the rest of
our colleagues for your support and help during the interviewing session with the workers.

Finally, we find no words to express our depth of gratitude to immortal love and blessings of our
beloved parents, who encouraged us in every step of it. The constant encouragement, support, love and
affection from all my friends and relatives acted as an inspiring force and helped us to make the
research project possible.

39
REFERENCES
1. Forde MS, Punnett L, Wegman DH. Pathomechanisms of work related musculoskeletal
disorders: conceptual issues. Ergonomics 2002;45: 619-30

2. Hagberg M, Silverstein B, Wells R, et al. Work related musculoskeletal disorders ( WMSDs). A

reference book for prevention. Scientific editors Kourinka I, Forcier L. ed. London :Taylor &
Francis, 1992

3. Work- Related Musculoskeletal Disease In Australia, April 2006, Australian Safety and
Compensation Council: Australian Government

4. S.Vijayalatha and Dr. G.Brindha (2014), A Study On Employee Absenteeism, International Journal
of Advance and Innovative Research Volume 1, Issue 1

5. Sickness absence survey 2015, June 2015, the manufacturers organization-jefl: employee
benefits.

6. Debra Leaker,Officer for National Statistics, Sickness absence from work in the UK, Economic &
Labour Market Review | Vol 2 | No 11 | November 2008

7. http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/dayslost.htm

8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BOH_Plantations

9. http://www.cameronhighlandsinfo.com/attraction/BOH_Tea_Plantations/

10. http://www.boh.com.my/page/26/BOH-Plantations-SDN.-BHD./

11. https://www.scribd.com/doc/62152741/Absenteeism-Among-the-Tea-Garden-Labourers-A-
case-study-on-mancotta-tea-garden

12. http://hrmpractice.com/absenteeism/

13. Stuart C Whitaker The Management Of Sickness Absence, Occupation Environmental Medicine
2001;58:420-424

40
APPENDICES

Appendix A : Data Collection, Factory Visit & Discussion

41
42
43
44
45
Appendix B : Questionnaire

QUESTIONNAIRE OF ABSENTEEISM OF EMPLOYEES AMONG TEA PLANTATION WORKERS

PLEASE ANSWER THE QUESTIONS BELOW./ SILA JAWAB SOALAN-SOALAN DIBAWAH.

Demographic

Age: ___________
Umur: _______

Marital status: Single Married Others: ___________

Status perkahwinan: Bujang Berkahwin Lain-lain: ____________

Sex: Male Female

Jantina: Lelaki Perempuan

Nationality: local migrant please state:____________

Kewarganegaraa: Tempatan Migrasi sila nyatakan :__________

Race: Malay Indian Chinese Others:___________

Bangsa : Melayu India Cina Lain-lain: ________

JOB PROFILE
Profil Pekerjaan

Position / Jawatan:

Plucker / pemetik daun teh

General worker / pekerja am

Factory worker / pekerja kilang

Mandore / mandur

Driver / pemandu

Conductor / konduktor

Administration / pentadbiran

Others / lain-lain

46
Permanent worker/ perkerja tetap Temporary worker/ pekerja sementara

Working hour/day: ______

Jam bekerja/hari : _______

Working years/experience: _____ year _____month

Tempoh bekerja/pengalaman: _____ tahun _____bulan

Insurance: Yes No
Insuran : Ya Tidak

Monthly income:__________________
Pendapatan bulanan: ________________

Are you clear about your work/ job responsibility:

Adakah anda jelas dengan tanggungjawab dan kerja anda:
Well clear Good Fairly clear Dont know
Sangat jelas Jelas Kurang jelas Tidak jelas

ABSENTEEISM / KETIDAKHADIRAN

Frequency of leave (monthly): Nil Once 2-3times 4-5times >5times

Kekerapan ketidakhadiran (bulanan): Tiada Sekali 2-3 kali 4-5 kali > 5 kali

Reason(s) of absence / Sebab ketidakhadiran:

1. Musculoskeletal disorder (joint pain, back pain, neck pain, etc.)

Kesakitan otot dan tulang (sakit sendi, sakit belakang, sakit leher, dll)

Please circle the site(s) of pain /

Sila bulatkan bahagian sakit yang berkaitan

47
 a) While working is the pain or discomfort/ semasa bekerja adakah sakit /rasa tidak selesa anda
Less/semakin berkurang same /sama worse/semakin teruk
b) After your shift is the pain or discomfort/ selepas habis bekerja adakah sakit/ rasa tidak selesa
anda
Less/semakin berkurang same /sama worse/semakin teruk

c) After a leave from work is the pain or discomfort/ selepas mendapat cuti adakah sakit / rasa
tidak selesa anda
Less/semakin berkurang same /sama worse/semakin teruk

d) Has the pain or discomfort caused you to take time off work in the past 4 months/adakah sakit
atau rasa tidak selesa menyebabkan anda mengambil cuti pada 4 bulan lepas
Yes /ya no/tidak
If yes how many days off in all?/ jika ya berapa hari anda cuti________days/hari
e) To what degree has your pain or discomfort interfere with/ seteruk mana sakit /rasa tidak selesa
anda mengganggu
No/tidak Some/sedikit Very distracting/sangat
mengganggu
Your work/kerja anda
your daily life/ kehidupan harian
Your sleep/tidur anda

f) How many days have you have pain with your body parts for the last 12 months/berapa
lamakah anda mengalami sakit di bahagian badan anda dalam jangkamasa 12 bulan
0 days/tiada 1-7 days/1-7 hari 8-30 days/8-30 hari

30-90 days/30-90 hari >90 days/>90 hari Everyday/setiap hari

2.Minor illness / Masalah penyakit biasa

diarrhea / cirit-birit

fever / demam

flu / selesema

cough / batuk

gastritis / radang perut

vomiting / munta

dental problems / masalah pergigian

diseases of ear,eye,skin / penyakit telinga, mata, kulit

allergic / alahan

48
 hornet or bee stings / sengatan tebuan atau lebah

snake bite/ gigitan ular

others/ lain-lain (specify/nyatakan:__________________)

3.Other problems/ masalah- masalah lain:

Work-related injury / Kemalangan di tempat kerja

Stress/ anxiety/ depression / Tekanan perasaan/kegelisahan/kemurungan

Medical condition / Masalah kesihatan (kencing manis, darah tinggi, dll)

Family responsibility / Masalah keluarga

Accident not related to work / Kemalngan bukan di tempat kerja

Pregnancy / Mengandung

No reason for leave/ tiada sebab

4.Alcohol abuse/ penyalahgunaan alkohol

yes / ya no/ tidak

if yes, please answer the following questions / jika ya, jika jawab soalan dibawah:
frequency of alcohol intake per week / kekerapan pengambilan alcohol dalam masa seminggu?
___________________________________

Type of alcohol:
whisky beer liquor wine other: ______________________
Amount of alcohol per intake (number of glass/can) / jumlah pengambilan alcohol (bilangan gelas/tin):
__________________
JOB SATISFACTION / KEPUASAN KERJA

1. Opinion about your job/ Pendapat tentang kerja anda

Heavy workload / bebanan kerja berlebihan
Examples : - working hour for more than 8 hours/ berkerja lebih dari 8 jam
- tea carrying more than 25 kg/ memikul daun teh lebih dari 25kg
Uneven terrain / faktor muka bumi yang tidak sekata (curam)

Poor working climate (raining season, hot season) /

keadaan cuaca yang tidak sesuai (musim hujan, musim panas)
Others / Lain - lain: __________________________________

None of the above/tiada

49
2. Attending on time/ Ketepatan masa Yes/ya No /tidak

3. Workers opinion about the effet of absenteeism

Pendapat tentang kesan akibat ketidakhadiran
Cause work stress / tekanan di tempat kerja

Delayed performance / prestasi menurun

Lead to overtime / menyebabkan waktu bekerja bertambah

Less turnover / kurang pertukaran waktu bekerja

No effect/tiada kesan

4. Opinion regarding work environment / Pendapat tentang persekitaran tempat bekerja

Excellent / Sangat baik Good / Baik Fair / Sederhana Poor / Lemah

5. The workers thought regarding the work pressure on the job / Pendapat pkerja berkaitan dengan
tekanan kerja

Yes, there is a lot of work pressure / Ya, terdapat banyak tekanan kerja

No, there is no work pressure / Tidak, tiada tekanan kerja

6. Type of work pressure the employee facing in the organization / Jenis tekanan kerja yang dihadapi

Poor medical facilities /kekurangan kemudahan perubatan

Improper environment / Persekitaran yang tidak sesuai

Poor welfare of worker / kebajikan perkerja yang kurang memuaskan

Inadequate compensation / pampasan yang tidak mencukupi

7. Employee opinion for long absence (>1months)/ Sebab perkerja mengambil cuti panjang(>1bulan):

Family problem / Masalah keluarga

Personal problem / Masalah peribadi

Religious matter / Masalah keagamaan

Social obligation / Tanggungjawab sosial

Medical condition / Masalah perubatan (accident, chronic illness, etc)

50
 None of the above / Selain di atas : ____________________

8. Workers opinion about the factor to reduce the absenteeism / Pendapat pekerja tentang faktor
untuk mengurangkan kadar ketidakhadiran

Increase in number of days of leave / Menambah bilangan hari cuti

Better working condition / Persekitaran kerja yang lebih baik

Incentives and bonuses based on performance / Memberi insentif dan bonus berdasarkan tahap
prestasi

Better performance appraisal / Memberi pujian terhadap prestasi pekerja

Coordination with co-worker / Kerjasama antara rakan sekerja

Good management / pengurusan yang baik

9. Employee satisfaction level with relationship with the superior / Tahap kepuasan tentang
hubungan antara pekerja dengan pihak atasan

Highly satisfied / Sangat berpuas hati Satisfied / Berpuas hati Neutral / Neutral

Dissatisfied / Tidak berpuas hati Highly dissatisfied / Sangat tidak berpuas hati

10. Your view regarding the facilities provided to you at your workplace / Pandangan anda mengenai
kemudahan yang disediakan di tempat kerja

Facilities/ kemudahan Excellent / Sangat baik Good / Baik Fair / Sederhana Poor / Lemah
Medical /perubatan
Housing / penempatan

11. Are you satisfied with your work / Adakah anda berpuas hati dengan kerja anda

Well satisfied / Sangat berpuas hati Good / Berpuas hati Fair / Sederhana
Not satisfied / Tidak berpuas hati

51