Contributions of Ergonomics to the Collective Work Analysis

an interview with Leda Leal Ferreira

Abstract

This interview is motivated by an interest in debating the impact and consequences of the contributions of Alain Wisner’s ergonomics to the analysis of work. The interviewee, Leda Leal Ferreira, occupational physician and ergonomist retired by Fundacentro, is part of a group of Brazilian researchers who undertook training in ergonomics with Wisner in France and after that contributed to the development of this discipline in Brazil. The interviewee talks about her training at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of São Paulo (FMUSP) and at the National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts (CNAM, in the acronym in French), and discusses the relevance of the French doctor for the development of Brazilian ergonomics. She briefly explains the similarities and distinctions between the Collective Work Analysis, a method developed by her, and the Ergonomic Work Analysis, developed by Wisner. Observing the political context in which the interview took place, the interviewee speaks about the challenges faced by approaches that aim to improve working conditions in the face of a growing fragility of work relations and the reformulation of occupational health and safety policies.