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Although a significant amount of research has already been published, the field of ergonomics/human factors and sustainability (E/HF-S) has not yet been systematically profiled based on recent studies. Conducting a systematic review of the literature, this article aims: (i) to identify the main emergent research themes in this subject area and (ii) to provide future directions for applied research and practice on E/HF-S. Six emergent research themes were identified in this literature allowing for a proposal to synthesise the main concepts related to E/HF-S. However, it was noted that there are still relatively few empirical papers which assess the models being developed or that apply E/HF principles to sustainability challenges. Thus, this paper identifies the opportunities for practical application related to E/HF-S. The last part of the paper explores the E/HF-S opportunities using an external framework; the United Nations' sustainable development goals.

O objetivo geral desse artigo é analisar como os trabalhadores afastados do ambiente laboral por motivo de doença vivenciaram o rompimento com o trabalho e quais perspectivas de futuro elaboraram a partir dessa vivência. Participaram do estudo nove trabalhadores afastados do ambiente laboral por motivo de doença, usuários de um Centro de Referência em Saúde do Trabalhador de uma capital do nordeste brasileiro. Os instrumentos utilizados foram: um questionário sociodemográfico e uma entrevista semiestruturada, submetida à análise de conteúdo temática, com o auxílio teórico da Psicodinâmica do Trabalho. Evidenciou-se que os trabalhadores chegam a preferir os sofrimentos vivenciados no trabalho àqueles oriundos do seu afastamento, assim como possuem expectativas frustradas de reconhecimento, somadas às limitações para o alcance de melhores perspectivas profissionais.

The use of serious games and entertainment games was compared as adjuvant tools for intervention in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). A comprehensive search was performed in the MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. From 295 studies, 53 studies were selected and included in this review. Overall, studies showed improvement after intervention, regardless of the type of video games, mostly for social skills and behavior. However, these changes should be regarded with caution, as they are limited to the tests applied. Furthermore, neither the entertainment nor the serious approach had a therapeutic impact on emotional resilience, representing the current gap in the field. Thus, even considering the limitations, our study is important because it shows that both categories have strengths.

Offshore wind energy has been identified as one of the most promising and increasingly attractive sources of energy. This technology offers a long-term power-generation source, less environmental impact, and fewer physical restrictions. However, given the complexity of this technology, economic feasibility studies are essential. Thus, this study aims to identify the main trends and criteria or the methods used in the economic feasibility studies of offshore wind energy, providing a review of the state of the art in this literature. For this, a Systematic Literature Review was carried out. The article shows the growing interest in offshore wind power generation and highlights how recently the interest in the studies that assess the technical–economic feasibility of this source has grown; it presents the main milestones of the topic. Based on a structured literature review, this article identifies the main trends in this topic: (i) wind farms, (ii) risk, (iii) floating offshore wind farms, (iv) decommissioning and repowering, (v) net present value, (vi) life cycle cost, and (vii) multi-criteria decision-making; it provides a broad view of the methodological possibilities and specificities for investors and researchers interested in conducting studies on the economic feasibility of offshore wind generation. In addition, finally, a research agenda is proposed.

BACKGROUND: Sustainability is a highly important theme worldwide and currently is being tackled by almost all disciplines. Indeed, the future of humanity is dependent on the actions taken now and in the immediate future. The Ergonomics and Human Factors (E/HF) community has not been indifferent to this issue, and one of the concrete actions adopted by the International Ergonomics Association (IEA) was the establishment of the “Human Factors for Sustainable Development” (HFSD) Technical Committee. OBJECTIVE: To identify future paths of action, this paper recognizes the trajectory of the HFSD Technical Committee, summarizes the contributions presented at IEA2021, the International Congress on Ergonomics held virtually in Vancouver in 2021, and reflects on key aspects that should be boosted by the Technical Committee. METHODS: This is a qualitative interpretative study that reflects on the contributions of members of the HFSD community working on E/HF for sustainability. RESULTS: Central topics and opportunities in E/HF and sustainability include complexity of systems, behaviors, and work; energy use and consumption; co-design, interconnectivity, territories, and the relationships with stakeholders. CONCLUSION: Although the contributions have been growing, there is still a lot of work needed, both theoretically and practically. Themes to be discussed include the concepts of sustainability and work. Considering the centrality of human beings (i.e., decision making for achieving the different dimensions of sustainability), the authors identify a set of values as core principles for leading the discussion.

BACKGROUND: Studies on illness in the footwear industry have prioritized specific work sectors and diseases. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the main factors related to sickness absence and the indicators of illness in terms of recurrence and workdays lost among workers at a footwear company, ranging from storage of raw material to distribution of the final product. METHODS: A total of 9072 cases of absence from work were investigated in shoe production units from 2014 to 2017. Univariate models estimated the risk of bodily dysfunction (physiological and psychological) and the severity of recurrence and work days lost. RESULTS: (1) Most production units and work sectors were related to one or more affected bodily functions; (2) Neuromusculoskeletal and movement-related functions and the work sectors of prefabrication; cutting, assembly and finishing; and quality inspection of the final product required a longer recovery time before return to work and had a greater recurrence of leave; and (3) Women seemed to be more affected than men in terms of the reappearance of symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Illness differs according to occupational sectors. The production sectors present more serious situations due to physical overload, intense rhythm and concentration, monotony and low autonomy.

This research combines corporate sustainability performance and sustainable business model concepts to improve the corporate sustainability of organizations. The main objective of this article is to propose and apply a tool to identify sustainable innovation opportunities through a structured brainstorming process while providing a systemic business perspective and a strong multi-stakeholder orientation. The present qualitative research was carried out in two phases. The first phase consisted of a critical analysis of literature that enabled the proposition of the Two-Lenses Model (2LM) for sustainability innovation. The corporate sustainability performance lens encompasses strategic drivers, business processes, capabilities, stakeholders’ satisfaction and contributions. The sustainable business models lens considers value proposition, value creation and delivery system and value capture and sharing. The second phase consists of applying the 2LM in two industrial cases. The results show that the proposed model has the potential to trigger the identification of opportunities through two mechanisms: misalignments between performance dimensions and gaps in stakeholder satisfaction. Further research opportunities lie on deepening into these findings and investigating the implementation process for the identified innovation opportunities.

The operation of electrical systems is becoming more difficult due to the intermittent and seasonal characteristics of wind and solar energy. Such operational challenges can be minimized by the incorporation of energy storage systems, which play an important role in improving the stability and reliability of the grid. The economic viability of hybrid power plants with energy storage systems can be improved if regulations enable the remuneration of the various ancillary services that they can provide. Thus, the aim of this study is to provide a literature review regarding the economic feasibility of hybrid wind and solar photovoltaic generation with energy storage systems and its legal and regulatory aspects. Observing the global tendency, new studies should address the technical and economic feasibility of hybrid wind and solar photovoltaic generation in conjunction with, at least, one kind of energy storage system. In addition, it is very important to take into account the regulatory barriers and propose solutions to remove them. It was observed that although regulatory aspects can influence the economic feasibility of hybrid projects, little is known about this relationship among regulatory frameworks. The findings presented in this article are important not only for Brazil, but also for other countries that do not have regulations in force to support the use of energy storage systems in hybrid systems.

Sources such as solar and wind energy are intermittent, and this is seen as a barrier to their wide utilization. The increasing grid integration of intermittent renewable energy sources generation significantly changes the scenario of distribution grid operations. Such operational challenges are minimized by the incorporation of the energy storage system, which plays an important role in improving the stability and the reliability of the grid. This study provides the review of the state-of-the-art in the literature on the economic analysis of battery energy storage systems. The paper makes evident the growing interest of batteries as energy storage systems to improve techno-economic viability of renewable energy systems; provides a comprehensive overview of key methodological possibilities for researchers interested in economic analysis of battery energy storage systems; indicates the need to use adequate economic indicators for investment decisions; and identifies key research topics of the analyzed literature: (i) photovoltaic systems with battery energy storage systems for residential areas, (ii) comparison between energy storage technologies, (iii) power quality improvement. The last key contribution is the proposed research agenda.

Work is a major issue in the discussions on the Covid‐19 pandemic, whose consequences impair the capacities of workers at all organizational levels and impose unexpected challenges on managers. Nevertheless, the scientific literature still lacks an overview of how researchers have been covering the issue. This article presents a systematic review to investigate the impact of Covid‐19 on work and workers of all occupations, reveal research gaps, and help managers to adapt to organizations amid the pandemic. This review is based on a sample of 258 papers from Web of Science and Scopus databases. Quantitative and qualitative analysis indicated a vast majority of studies focused on frontline healthcare workers and a lack of empirical investigation on managers' work. We show how literature has been addressing different aspects of work (e.g., workers' health, working conditions, procedures, protection equipment, remote working, etc.) in the various economic sectors. We discuss the results in light of ergonomics and psychodynamics of work, two disciplines that conceive work and organization as intimately connected, and that can assist managers in meeting the difficulties brought by the pandemic. We highlight that considering the construction of health, interindividual variability, subjective relation to work, supportive workplace environment, and organizational and individual capabilities can play a key role in successfully adapting and transforming organizations in the current scenario.

O presente estudo tem por objetivo identificar a produção científica e artigos orientados pela Teoria das Representações Sociais, acerca do idoso no período da pandemia provocada pelo Covid-19. A amostra foi constituída por 11 artigos, produzidos com a temática, e estes foram analisados pelo software Iramuteq, por meio do Método Reinert, a partir da Classificação Hierárquica Descendente (CHD) e a Análise de Similitude (AS). Os resultados da análise lexical do corpus apresentaram cinco classes: (i) Aspectos emocionais da doença Covid-19; (ii) Concepções acerca da origem do coronavírus; (iii) Papel da mídia na construção da representação social do Covid-19; (iv) Identificação de estudos iniciais sobre coronavírus; e, (v) Adaptações às restrições e desafios da pandemia de Covid-19. Na análise de similitude, a Covid-19 e a representação social estavam relacionadas aos vocábulos idoso, coronavírus, estudo e identificação. Os vocábulos de baixa coocorrências foram objetivados em experiência, doença, medo, estratégia, indicando os aspectos psicossociais representativos do adoecer. O medo foi o elemento figurativo da objetivação, tendo como ancoragem os fatores psicoemocionais, pois esteve associado não só ao risco do contágio, mas também ao risco de morte. Para os idosos, os sentimentos adversos e as consequências do isolamento foram sentidas por dois aspectos, o primeiro junto a disseminação do vírus perigoso para idosos, e segundo trouxeram as incertezas sobre o futuro gerando implicações psicossociais ainda não medidas a longo prazo.

This paper addresses sustainable business models (SBMs), as an attempt to systematically integrate corporate sustainability principles (including economic, environmental and social goals; multi-stakeholder perspective and long-term outlook) into core business. However, understanding the mechanisms for this systematic integration is still challenging, given complexities of sustainable development. Therefore, SBM concept risks that, by trying to include everything, it may end up losing meaning and connection to practical solutions. To do so, we employ a multi-method approach encompassing a systematic literature review to ensure conceptual basis for the proposed framework and thirteen qualitative interviews with practitioners for face validation of the tool. This paper proposes the Sustainable Value Exchange Matrix, a visual framework to help academics and practitioners discuss sustainable business models, based on solid theory analysis and practice-oriented application. The tool proposed provokes reflections about organization's reason of existence and deployment of this purpose into the business model dimensions from a multi-stakeholder and from a value exchange perspective.

The process of decision making can be critical in various ways. In particular, because it determines the path towards or away from sustainable development. In this context, the present study examined the relationship between rationalities for decisions making processes and sustainable development in order to gain a better understanding of how to promote a more sustainable development model. In order to achieve this purpose, a systematic literature review was conducted based on 151 articles structuring the contributions of academic literature that discuss the relationship between rationality and sustainable development. All articles in this literature base state the need for changes in the current decision-making model, which is dominated by the logic of instrumental rationality. The main criticism is that this logic tends to focus excessively on individualistic interests. The literature points out the need for other rationalities to provide alternative decision paradigms to foster sustainable development, including: (i) substantive rationality, towards integrating values for sustainable development in decision making; (ii) communicative rationality to promote cooperation and coordination for more sustainable development; and lastly, (iii) bounded rationality, which advises about the need to consider human cognitive properties and the presence of complexities intrinsic to sustainable development. Thus, more sustainable decisions would require: educating for sustainability-related values (e.g., ethics, cooperation, respect for the environment, etc.) to influence individual decisions; making decision-makers accountable, to improve cooperative and collective actions for discussion and decision processes, especially for decisions that affect the social sphere and the environment; and promoting systemic changes in the current development model.

The introduction of strategic corporate sustainability policies is expected to result in the improvement of several issues in companies. One of these issues is work, which should involve greater well-being for workers. Within the context of production engineering, this research connects sustainability and work-related issues, the latter seen in light of the discipline of ergonomics. Based on case studies conducted at four companies considered sustainability benchmarks, we examined how the introduction of the theme of sustainability has influenced work-related issues. The elements analyzed here were the corporate sustainability strategy, organizational practices for deploying the strategy, and the work design phase. The last element is the moment in which work is prescribed in the organization. The results show that, despite the announcement of the inclusion of changes in work, there is not any explicit evidence confirming that such changes are considered as a requirement for corporate sustainability projects.

Despite indications in the literature about the existence of win-win business opportunities regarding sustainability, most companies are still producing limited social and environmental results that are disconnected from their value propositions. Studies on the rationales underlying decisions regarding sustainability can offer a better understanding of this challenge. In particular, substantive rationality suggests that the decision-making process consider collective values for sustainability. This study investigates the following research question: What are the main challenges of making business decisions based on moral values of sustainable development? Using strategic decisions as a unit of analysis, action research in a start-up environment identified the following business challenges: (1) recognizing the limits of applying the moral values of sustainable development to the current business context dominated by maximization of economic and financial benefit values, (2) recognizing the normative nature of sustainability goals, which implies that moral values related to sustainable development are still external and not naturally occurring in people&rsquo, s personal moral values, (3) addressing conflicts between moral and benefit values and between collective and individual goals when including substantive rationality in business decisions, (4) engaging business stakeholders according to their personal moral values, as people are value driven, and (5) engaging workers in sustainable development values, as they play a central role in enabling benefit value creation for sustainable development. The paper offers interesting insights into moral value and benefit value. The former is the basis for individual decisions, while the latter represents benefits created by business models. Both concepts have been separately investigated, but this research delimits and differentiates them. Future studies can further investigate decision rationalities to enable sustainability in practice, as this is usually a theoretical discussion. Research on other start-ups and more mature organizations can also provide interesting insights.

The study aims to assess the association between various levels of engagement in a worksite physical activities program and variables related to musculoskeletal symptoms, psychophysiological well-being, difficulty to perform tasks, willingness to work, and interpersonal relationships, among men and women in a footwear industry. This program involved 1113 workers. Data were analysed using an ordinal logistic regression model. In women, an increase in the frequency of participation in the worksite physical activities program was associated with less musculoskeletal pain (OR = 3.12; 2.07–4.71), better relationships among colleagues (OR = 2.83; 1.67–4.81), and a higher level of psychophysiological well-being (OR = 1.98; 1.06–3.70). In men, an increase in the frequency participation in the worksite physical activities program was associated with less difficulty in performing occupational tasks (OR = 0.49; 0.27–0.87). Thus, the association between occupational exercises and studied variables differed between genders.

This article presents the results of an academic research project connecting the discipline of ergonomics (and work-related issues) with the theme of sustainability. Despite the stated aim of creating value for stakeholders, including employees, companies face difficulties in introducing effective sustainability policies. The research question addressed in this article is the following: How can companies improve their decision-making processes to increase workers' wellbeing using policies integrating issues related to corporate sustainability and ergonomics? Currently, corporate sustainability is focused mainly on the triple bottom line (TBL) concept. In this context, the integration of ergonomics is fragmented and arguably separate from strategic human-resource functions (which have largely been the primary promoter of the internal-social component of corporate sustainability). This research argues that corporate sustainability requires a new step, improving the decision-making process, with the inclusion of more types of rationalities and the recognition of the centrality of workers in the process of creating sustainable action. When corporate sustainability policies focus on worker centrality, they open space for the integration of ergonomics as a pillar of an organization's corporate sustainability strategy. Based on a complex view of work systems, ergonomics can introduce values aligned with sustainability and promote cooperation in organizations. Different stakeholders working at companies can make use of different concepts proposed by ergonomics and other work sciences to support changes in their decision-making processes. In view of broader sustainability objectives, integrating different work-related considerations can help improve performance, including productivity, quality and health.

In a research project about work-related issues and corporate sustainability conducted in Brazil, the goal was to better understand how work-related issues were addressed in the corporate context. Particularly, there are some specific initiatives that serve as guides to organizational decisions, which make their performance indicators for the context of corporate sustainability.1) To explore the presence of work-related issues and their origins in corporate sustainability approach, analyzing a) corporate disclosures; b) sustainability guidelines that are identified as relevant in corporate disclosures; c) documents that are related to sustainable development and also identified as key-documents for these guidelines and initiatives. 2) To present the activity-centered ergonomics and psychodynamics of work contributions to work-related issues in a corporate sustainability approach.An exploratory study based on multiple sources of evidence that were performed from 2012 to 2013, including interviews with companies that engaged in corporate sustainability and document analysis using the content analysis approach.Work-related issues have been presented since the earliest sustainable development documents. It is feasible to construct an empirical framework for work-related issues and corporate sustainability approaches.1) Although some authors argue that corporate sustainability has its roots based only on the environmental dimension, there is strong empirical evidence showing that social dimension aspects such as work-related issues have been present since the beginning. 2) Some indicators should be redesigned to more precisely translate the reality of some workplaces, particularly those indicators related to organizational design and mental health.

Different actors working on organisations aligned with sustainability take into account aspects pertaining to environmental, economic, and social dimensions. This implies a complex system-of-systems approach that particularly involves social aspects. In this sense, according to both activity-centred ergonomics and the psychodynamics of work point of view, work activity can be interpreted in terms of human action, from the standpoint of sustainability for the individual as well as for collective life inside and outside the companies. This means work activity should be highlighted as vital not only for quality and productivity but also to workers themselves, including, ultimately, the development of society and culture. However, even organisations that claim to regard work activity as something that should be designed to provide meaning and purpose that helps to build both individuals’ mental health and identity, these elements are still poorly developed in practice, at least in Brazilian organisations where it has been deeply studied. Therefore, this chapter discusses how corporate actors perceived and implemented relevant issues related to internal social corporate sustainability (e.g. worker’s health) and also the relationships between work activity and corporate sustainability. Lastly, the proposal aims to understand how ideas and principles of activity-centred ergonomics and the psychodynamics of work can contribute to the development of more sustainable organisations.

Com a introdução de políticas estratégicas de sustentabilidade corporativas esperase que as empresas aprimorem várias questões, dentre as quais, aquelas relacionadas ao trabalho, propiciando maior bem estar para seus trabalhadores. Dentro do contexto da engenharia da produção foi buscado conectar a temática da sustentabilidade com a temática do trabalho, esta última contemplada pela disciplina da ergonomia. Através de estudos de caso desenvolvidos em quatro empresas consideradas de referência em sustentabilidade analisou-se como a introdução da temática da sustentabilidade influenciou as questões relacionadas ao trabalho, desde a divulgação no externo e no interno da organização, passando pela análise dos meios organizacionais de desdobramento, até a fase de projeto de trabalho. Esta última fase é o instante em que se prescreve o trabalho na organização. Espera-se que a empresa engajada na sustentabilidade dedique uma posição de relevância ao trabalhador e ao seu bem-estar nesta fase. Os estudos de caso foram essenciais para confirmar sete proposições as quais permitiram confirmar a tese de doutorado, a saber, \"Embora sejam divulgadas como incluídas, não existem evidências explicitas de que mudanças no trabalho sejam consideradas durante a introdução de políticas de sustentabilidade\". A partir desse resultado de pesquisa, são discutidas as contribuições que podem ser proporcionadas pela disciplina de ergonomia nas empresas para aumentar a efetividade da introdução das questões de trabalho em suas políticas de sustentabilidade sistêmicas, permitindo um alinhamento entre o que é divulgado e o que realmente é introduzido nas organizações. With the introduction of strategic corporate sustainability policies, it is expected that companies improve several issues. Work is one of those issues, leading to provide greater well-being for workers. Within the context of production engineering, this research connects sustainability and work issues, the latter contemplated by the discipline of ergonomics. Through case studies developed in four companies considered benchmark in sustainability, it was examined how the introduction of the theme of sustainability has influenced the work-related issues. The elements analyzed were the corporate sustainability strategy, the organizational paths to deploy the strategy and the work design phase. The last element is the moment in which work is prescribed in the organization. It is expected that the company engaged in sustainability dedicates a position of relevance to workers and their well being at this stage. Case studies are essential to confirm seven propositions, which allowed confirming the thesis, namely: \"Although disseminate as included, there is no explicit evidence that changes in work are considered when introducing sustainability policies\". The thesis is the starting point for discussions about the contributions of the discipline of ergonomics to increase the effectiveness of the introduction of work issues in corporate sustainability policies. There is an opportunity to align what is disseminated and what really is introduced into organizations, about work issues.

The concept of sustainable development still needs more scientific discussion to be useful for decision-making processes. The polysemy of the term sustainability has undermined the credibility of the concept, leading, among other effects, to the inability to translate discourse into practical actions and to distortive appropriations of the term. The purpose of this article is to propose a basis for discussion to demarcate the concept. In this context, a literature review was conducted on the theme, encompassing an exploratory approach and a systematic hermeneutics analysis of the literature. Based on a structured discussion of the evidence collected in papers and books, we developed a conceptual model named Sustainable Development with an Axiological Perspective, encompassing three dimensions: satisfaction of human needs (including social and economic aspects), natural resources (making explicit Earth's limitations) and decision-making perspective (from an axiological point of view). The model proposes that sustainable development can be seen as development aimed at improving the well-being of society as a whole (including future generations), enabled by an axiological perspective in decision-making processes, considering the limitations of environmental resources. The model explicitly includes a value-based mindset in the concept of sustainable development, as pointed out by the axiological perspective. This perspective is intrinsic to the main definitions of sustainability, but is not explicit in the models and in the literature on sustainable development.

BACKGROUND By introducing policies for sustainability and social responsibility, companies declare their interest in caring for all stakeholders, including workers. OBJECTIVE To analyze how and which themes related to work practices and to workers are approached in the discourse of corporations are considered sustainable and socially responsible. Based on ergonomic principles, more elements are brought into this discussion, viewed from a strategic perspective for the development of corporations and society. PARTICIPANTS Data collected from 20 corporations considered more sustainable according to an assessment made by the Corporate Knights organization. METHODS Multiple-case study, based on the analysis of secondary sources content (websites and reports). Analysis of websites and reports by their content, and their classification according to the aspects present in the thematic of work practices and of human rights elaborated by standard ISO 26000. RESULTS Corporations show that the worker is one of the stakeholders to be considered in their sustainability and social responsibility policies. However, it's not possible using this method to obtain effective evidences related to actual programs performed by companies in order to demonstrate the real importance of workers in sustainable polices. CONCLUSIONS The discipline of ergonomics could be active in improving the implementation of corporate social responsibility policies, especially by emphasizing the social dimension of these policies.

The growing importance of sustainability in corporate policies represents a great opportunity for workers to gain more consideration, with great benefits to their well being. Sustainable work is believed to be one which improves the organization’s performance and fosters professional development as well as workers’ health. In a multiple case study based on document research, information was sought about work activities and their sustainability or CSR policies, as disseminated by corporations. All the companies devoted attention to work activities and delivered a good amount of information about them. Nevertheless, the information presented was generic; all the actions developed were top-down and there was no information about the impact of changes aimed at sustainability on the workers’ activities. It was found that the companies seemed to be at an early stage. In the future, they need to show more commitment through concrete goals: they must be aware that workers contribute directly to the corporations’ sustainability. This would allow room for Ergonomics and Work Psychodynamics to be incorporated and to be useful for both companies and society, so as to promote and ensure work sustainability.

Recent tendency has been pushing organizations to rethink their role in society and making organization reflect that profit may not be the only and foremost important business performance criteria. Thus recent literature has been exploring the sustainable business models (SBM's), as a way to insert sustainability goals into the core of business decisions. This research aims to advance in this body of knowledge and proposes a theory and practice-based framework to support organizations towards more SBM, making explicit main elements to align business to sustainability performance goals. To support the argument that there is no unique solution to design SBM, this research performs a multiple case studies in eleven organizations from diverse sectors, situated in Brazil and in the United Kingdom. Results show that SBM is not an attempt to deny business-as-usual perspective, but rather it seeks to complement this view, by adding a more axiological and systemic approach. In particular, three convergent aspects were identified in the case studies as relevant efforts support the integration of sustainability into SBM's value creation and delivery system: (1) the connection between business purpose and employees' values and believes; (2) the pro-active and clear engagement in solving sustainability problems; and (3) the need for system-level changes to enable successful SBM's. This systemic thinking is highlighted by the concept emerged from the research, the cascaded sustainable value captured, representing that, as SBM's are part of a value network, value delivered by the organizations is captured not only by stakeholders to which they have direct contact, but rather this is also deployed to stakeholders of focal company's stakeholders. This distinction is not always trivial for companies, so the proposed concept can support advances in SBM discussions. Further studies are called to the challenge of making explicit that SBM's are not only companies that directly addresses a specific social and/or environmental problem, but rather is an emerging paradigm on how to manage efficient businesses in any sector to add positive value to the globe.

This article is the product of research that analyzed the work of bus drivers of a public transportation company that is considered a benchmark reference in its field of operations, in which it strives to achieve operating excellence. Within this context, the authors sought to understand how such a company has managed to maintain a policy that is capable of reconciling quality public transport while also providing working conditions compatible with the professional development, comfort and health of its workers. Ergonomic work analysis and activity analysis were the guiding elements used in this study. Initial analyses indicate that the activity of drivers includes serving a population and providing mobility for it, which depends on driving the vehicle itself and on relationships with colleagues, users, pedestrians, drivers and others. Language: en

Based on the concepts of sustainability and knowledge management, this article seeks to identify points of contact between the two themes through an exploratory study of existing literature. The first objective is to find, in international litera- ture, the largest number of papers jointly related to the theme of knowledge management and sustainability. In these docu- ments, the authors looked at the kind of relationship existing between the two themes and what the benefits introduced in or- ganizations are. Based on an ergonomic point of view, the second objective of this article is to analyze the role of the worker (whether at the strategic or operational level) and his importance in this context. The results demonstrate that there is very little literature that addresses the two themes together. The few papers found, however, can be said to show the many advantages of introducing sustainability policies supported by adequate knowledge management. Very little has been studied with regards to the role of workers, which could be interpreted as meaning that little importance is given to the proactive role they may play. On the other hand, there is a high potential for future research in these areas, based on the high level of consideration of work- ers in knowledge management and sustainability literature, as well as in literature in the areas of ergonomics and sociology.

The article is the result of a survey aimed at analyzing the work of bus drivers for a collective urban transportation company that is considered a benchmark. The research sought to understand how the company could maintain a policy capable of reconciling the quality of public transportation with working conditions that are compatible with the professional development, comfort and health of the workers. The ergonomic work analysis methodology was adopted as a guide. The results show that one of the pillars of excellence achieved by this company is the quality of the work performed by their drivers, which is guided by the organizational values that permeate the organization. The driver plays a role in regulating the system by serving the population and providing mobility. Their activity is controlled by a series of interdependent variables, such as the demands for conducting the vehicle and the relationship with others.

A map was drawn up of the relationships between work (in its multiple interpretations) and sustainability (sustainable development and corporate sustainability) based on a bibliographic analysis of articles that discuss these themes jointly in the current academic literature. The position of the discipline of ergonomics focused on work was identified from this map and, based on its specific academic literature, it was possible to identify where this discipline could contribute so that work and workers can be included in the discourse of sustainable development and considered in corporate sustainability policies. Ergonomics can be actively influential within the organization on issues relating to work improvements; it may boost integrated increases in the organization's performance and in workers' well-being; it can provide support for changes and new (environmental) sustainability-related work requirements to be considered; and it can contribute to the definition of the concept of work in a context of sustainable development.

A abordagem organizacional fornece uma visão ampla das situações de trabalho, o que permite a melhoria dos processos e a construção de situações de bem-estar para os trabalhadores. Devido à natureza do serviço oferecido, que implica a presença de diferentes categorias de clientes, em algumas atividades podem ocorrer situações de conflito, como no caso de atendentes em atividades administrativas de um serviço ambulatorial. Eles exercem atividades nas quais são os conectores entre os pacientes e os médicos, dois tipos de clientes com diferentes e, às vezes, contrastantes necessidades. Análises sobre as características do serviço, como perecibilidade, intangibilidade e coprodução, permitiram encontrar elementos que provocam problemas e, como consequência, podem causar uma situação difícil para os atendentes. Esse fato poderia ser considerado normal para tal tipo de serviço, todavia, pode ser uma fonte de problemas de produção e de saúde para esses trabalhadores. Desse modo, consideramos ser importante propor mudanças organizacionais, visando melhorias neste tipo de situação de trabalho. An organizational approach can provide a wider range of work situations thus enabling improvements in the processes providing wellbeing of workers. In some activities, due to the nature of the service offered, which implies the presence of different types of customer, some conflict situations can occur. This is the case of attendants carrying out administrative duties of ambulatory services. They sometimes act as the link between the patients and the doctors, two different types of customers with different and sometimes contrasting needs. The analysis of service features such as intangibility, perishability, and co-production enabled to identify elements that cause problems and consequently difficult situations in the workplace. This could be considered normal considering this kind of service; however, it can affect production and lead to health problems for these workers. Therefore, it is important to propose organizational changes seeking improvements in this type of work situation.

This article discusses the creation of an improvement committee (IC) to implement policies aimed at improving working conditions in a public health institution in the city of Sao Paulo. Suggestions were proposed for future implementations of this organizational mechanism, pursuant to the presentation of the process of its formation and the main results achieved. The findings led to the conclusion that good outcomes require autonomy and support from management, and the adoption of effective measures to improve and legitimize the improvement committee's existence. Another important issue is facilitating worker involvement and creating a locus for dialog among people with different visions within the organization. Thus, two approaches converge: a top-down approach in which policies are defined and improvement actions are actually implemented based on a general outlook of the production and work system, and a bottom-up approach specific to employees who are also engaged in improvement policies and in putting them into practice. It is also possible to point out problems and opportunities arising from actual work situations to the higher levels of management. This kind of approach fits with macroergonomics, because it integrates strategy, organization and work issues. It is possible to discuss the benefits of this approach for companies and provide conditions for workers to engage effectively in these processes. In conclusion, these proposals can be considered from an emancipatory perspective, given that different actors should be able to codetermine working conditions and work content, thus directly influencing their individual and collective experiences. The support and commitment of upper management are essential elements of success in maximizing the effectiveness of this organizational approach.

The present action research article is linked to an ergonomics project in a university hospital. The author's proposal is to focus action on the effective worker involvement required for the creation of spaces/mechanisms within organizations where people can enhance cooperation and deliberation on matters relating to work. For this purpose, a committee was introduced to assist in finding problems and solutions directly in work situations, so that workers could experience relative autonomy allowing them to develop procedures and choose tools appropriate to their own real needs. Based on this organizational implementation and on subsequent interviews, the practical results are analyzed and related to employee involvement. One can conclude that workers in all areas of the organization can be active elements for improving working conditions and productivity in companies.

Esta dissertação foi idealizada a partir da busca de elementos que permitissem a introdução de melhorias duradouras e de maior porte nas organizações através da ergonomia. Os principais objetivos foram, primeiro, analisar os benefícios do desenvolvimento de ações ergonômicas em um nível mais elevado da organização e mais próximo àqueles que a gerenciam. Posteriormente, descrever e analisar os benefícios da presença de trabalhadores com um alto grau de emancipação em uma intervenção ergonômica. Como referencial teórico partimos da introdução da temática da ergonomia do trabalho, passando pela questão da emancipação no trabalho, e enfim pelo assunto da participação do trabalhador sob a ótica das teorias organizacionais. Um projeto de pesquisa ação numa instituição pública da área da saúde se constituiu um meio útil para o levantamento dos dados, obtidos sobretudo através de entrevistas semi-estruturadas e da participação efetiva do pesquisador nos processos de implantação dos dispositivos de melhoria. Em uma primeira parte foi avaliado e analisado o trajeto das ações ergonômicas desenvolvidas na instituição em estudo, enquanto na segunda parte dos resultados foi analisado o grau de envolvimento dos trabalhadores no processo de melhoria na organização em um nível mais abrangente da instituição. Este trabalho permitiu concluir que um papel proativo dos sujeitos visando uma efetiva transformação do trabalho pode propiciar resultados positivos e duradouros em intervenções ergonômicas, assim como é fundamental para a construção de um processo de emancipação dos trabalhadores (em vários níveis da organização). Fortemente relacionada à conclusão anterior é a confirmação de que quanto mais elevamos a discussão e quanto maior o apoio em níveis elevados de decisão sobre a ergonomia na hierarquia organizacional, maior é o sucesso na implementação de políticas de melhoria. The aim of this dissertation was to look for elements that allow organizations to introduce important and lasting improvements through ergonomics. Two main strategic goals have been pursued during this work. The first aim analyzes the benefits of ergonomics developed on high levels of organization, closer to managers. The second, instead, investigates the importance of a presence of workers with an high degree of emancipation within ergonomic approaches. From a theoretical point of view, the starting point consists of the introduction, in the working system, of ergonomic themes, worker emancipation and worker participation (analyzed within organization theories). The practical results have been achieved through an action research project applied to a public care organization. The outcomes were achieved mainly through the adoption of semi-structured interviews and the participation of the researcher during the processes of improvement implementation. First of all, the course of ergonomic actions developed in the institution under study have been evaluated and examined. Then the research focused on the degree of employee involvement in this process of improvement in a larger scale. This study revealed that a proactive role carried out by people looking for an effective transformation of the work provides positive and lasting results within an ergonomic intervention. At the same time this is fundamental to build a process of emancipation of workers in the different levels of organization. Therefore, on the basis of this conclusion, the more ergonomics is applied to higher levels of discussions and decisions in the organization hierarchy, the greater the success in implementing improvement policies is.