PROMENADE mall WILL DEVOTE an ENTIRE FLOOR TO entertainment A few weeks ago, Wolfgang Puck Cafe hung out a new, 17-foot sign. Next month, the restaurant will get a facelift. Fine jeweler Gideon’s just remodeled. And the owner of Mahogany Bay is thinking about extending the store’s hours well into the evening. The changes have been sparked by the start of a major construction project designed to transform the now-deserted lower level of Westfield Shoppingtown Promenade into an entertainment complex. With the overhaul of the troubled mall finally underway, merchants elsewhere in the center are digging in, sprucing up and making plans for the future. “I think this is going to be something like the (Third Street) Promenade in Santa Monica or like CityWalk,” said Hersel Goharchin, the manager at Gideon’s. “If you want to go and have fun, there isn’t anything in Woodland Hills. I think this is going to be great.” Westfield Corp. Inc., the mall’s owner, has closed deals to bring five new tenants into the shopping center, filling most of the lower level of the 600,000-square-foot complex with venues to eat, drink, relax and make merry. Maggiano’s, a family-style Italian restaurant chain headquartered in Chicago, will move into a 17,000-square-foot space with a sister company, Corner Bakery. Also in the months ahead, Barnes & Noble will open a 25,000-square-foot store, joining Jillian’s, a megaplex of bars, discos, restaurants, video games and bowling lanes also set to operate at the mall. Another restaurant chain, P.F. Chang’s, opened last month. “We’ve looked at the lower level and tried to re-tenant the property to play off the (existing movie) theater and the restaurants and differentiate it from (Westfield Shoppingtown) Topanga,” said David Doll, senior executive vice president for development at Westfield. The Promenade has long suffered in the shadow of the Topanga mall, about a mile to the north. At about 1 million square feet, Topanga has three retail anchors Nordstrom, Robinsons-May and Sears and enough specialty chains to draw customers from throughout the West San Fernando Valley and beyond. In contrast, the Promenade has just one retail anchor, Macy’s. Though previous owners have tried to position the mall as a chi-chi alternative to Topanga with such shops as I. Magnin and Saks Fifth Avenue, those stores moved out when sales failed to materialize. Even the addition of a 16-screen AMC movie theater in the mid-1990s failed to translate to increased sales for the retail tenants. “With the movies, we just experience a lot of lookey loo’s,” said the manager of one of the center’s boutiques who didn’t want her name used. “It’s empty and it seems it’s been that way for a while.” Distinctive destination Westfield, which also owns the Topanga mall, needed a strategy for reviving the center that would not compete directly with its sister complex. Rather than seek new retail tenants, Westfield officials decided to take an entirely different route. The company allowed most of the retail leases on the lower level to run out (a few stores were moved to the upper level) and moved to fill the entire lower level with entertainment destinations instead. “I think it’s a great strategy,” said Robert Starkman, a partner with the real estate advisory services practice at Ernst & Young LLP. “The other mall would remain as the premier regional center and here, about a mile away, they’re going to have the premier entertainment destination.” Traditional malls draw shoppers who come because they want a large selection of stores, and the same retailers can usually be found in most of these complexes. The Promenade, with boutiques like Coach, J. Crew and Williams Sonoma that limit their outlets to select centers, has always drawn shoppers who come to visit a particular store. Shoppers like Fran Jacobs, who was shopping at the Promenade on a recent sweltering afternoon, don’t even consider the center a mall. “I usually go to the regular mall,” she said, referring to Topanga Plaza. “This is more specialized and you can find out-of-the-ordinary things here.” Such perceptions mean the customers who do come to the mall are usually there to shop, not to browse or hang out. But without a steady stream of traffic, most merchants have to rely on repeat business to stay afloat. “We get a lot of ladies who are waiting for their husbands to get fitted for tuxedos,” said Marcia Berkowitz, assistant manager at Anna-Bella of Woodland Hills, which is located just across the way from a tuxedo shop. “But most of our customers are repeat customers.” The hope is that the overhaul will attract a fresh supply of customers. “We’re excited about the fact that they’re doing something, and we hope that what they’re doing will help the retail business,” said Joan Rozsa, the manager at Ames, a women’s specialty store. Seeking shoppers The existing restaurants at the Promenade also are hopeful that the additional traffic will boost their sales. Wolfgang Puck Cafe will remodel next month, changing its pop-art color scheme to a more sophisticated palette and adding 13 more booths. “We’re in a mall where there’s been nothing for the last year,” said Karl Buckman, the restaurant’s manager, who took advantage of the opening of P.F. Chang’s last month to hang a new sign over the entryway that faces the parking lot. “There was nothing to bring people in.” While the changes are expected to spike sales at the mall’s existing restaurants and the movie theater, they may have less impact on the retail shops, some say. “(Another) entertainment aspect would provide a destination for families and the community, but whether that will result in higher dollars per square foot remains to be seen,” said Brent Schoenbaum, senior manager for the consumer business practice at Deloitte & Touche. “Just bringing people into the mall doesn’t guarantee it will translate into incremental sales dollars.” Some merchants too, worry that the new visitors will pass them by on their way to an evening out, but the changes nonetheless offer a spark of hope. While the movie theaters have not been a big boost to retail sales, they have brought some customers into the stores. And, in places like Universal CityWalk, retail shops do reap the benefit of their entertainment neighbors, these retailers say. “Once they’re here, they enjoy walking around, and if they’re not going to purchase something right then and there, they’ll come back,” said Dori Warshaver, the owner of Mahogany Bay. Besides, Warshaver added, the late-night crowd the Promenade will attract gives the retail stores a niche other malls won’t have. “As there’s more here, I think traffic will increase and then I can see staying open late,” she said. “Every place closes up, so why not stay open? I think it will be a unique and interesting place.”

You may have only considered hiring a temporary for extra help with a project or to fill in for a vacationing employee, but did you know it’s also an increasingly common method of recruiting full-time talent. In today’s competitive employment environment, a growing number of companies are bringing in workers on a temporary or contract basis to assess their skills for full-time positions. In fact, 90 percent of managers polled in a survey commissioned by Robert Half International said they consider it valuable to retain individuals on a temporary basis as a means of evaluating them for permanent jobs. In a separate survey, 23 percent of businesses said they use this approach when hiring full-time support staff. Auditioning for the Job When filling a full-time position, there are significant advantages to first hiring someone on a temporary basis. For example, having the candidate on-site allows you to observe his or her skills, performance and personality to determine whether he or she is the right fit for the position. Evaluating someone’s work firsthand gives you information that is impossible to obtain from a resume or interview alone, thus maximizing the chance of making a sound hiring decision. Using these criteria you should be able to determine the candidate’s fit with the job opening and evaluate whether he or she has the potential to build a long-term career with your company. There are many other advantages to a temp-to-hire approach. If you work through a staffing firm, the skills and education of the prospective candidates will have already been evaluated and their references screened. It’s easy to underestimate the amount of time required to interview and screen candidates and train employees on your own, particularly in a tight labor market. If you are hiring for a newly created position, you may be uncertain of the necessary skill requirements until someone is actually on the job. This can be an opportunity to develop a thorough job description. You may already have an excellent temporary employee handling the work. If so, employing him or her for the full-time position will make for a smoother transition and can minimize any down time as well as the need for training. Is This Hire Necessary? While there are many advantages to hiring a temporary worker full-time, there are two things you need to assess before you extend an offer: First, is it truly a temporary job with seasonal duties creating peaks and valleys in the workload? Second, is it a full-time position? Perhaps it’s actually part-time or, in fact, requires more than one worker to fulfill the responsibilities. The next time you’re searching for someone to work full time, but also require interim help, hiring a temporary professional may be the ideal solution to both needs. Tony Uyehara is the regional manager of Robert Half International Inc. (RHI), the world’s first and largest staffing service specializing in the accounting, finance and information technology fields, and parent company of Robert Half and Accountemps. RHI has more than 280 offices throughout North America, Europe and Australia, including locations in Woodland Hills, Westlake Village and Glendale, and offers online job search services at www.rhii.com.

Here’s a challenge for any advertising firm: make the Los Angeles Police Department look warm and fuzzy to entice more people to become cops. That was the assignment for Duncan & Associates, a Santa Monica advertising agency that developed a series of TV and radio ads to recruit more people to the force in the midst of a tight job market. The four 30-second TV commercials, running mostly on local broadcast and cable channels from mid-July through mid-August in Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties, show various police officers chatting about what they enjoy about their jobs and why they chose their profession. Most of the featured officers are women or minorities. In one spot, a policewoman named Alma says she is willing to go the extra mile to save people. “Saving people’s lives is excellent,” she says. “That doesn’t happen every day. Impacting people’s lives, I can do that every day. It’s a great feeling.” Another commercial shows a policewoman talking about her experience as a cop and asking, “Why can’t people see your heart?” The spots present a stark contrast to the LAPD’s image on recent newscasts. First it was the fatal shooting last year of a 102-pound homeless woman who police said threatened them with a screwdriver. Then it was the Rampart Division brouhaha in which former policeman Rafael Perez admitted that he and other cops beat and framed people, lied in court and covered up shootings. Last week it was TV footage and newspaper photos showing LAPD officers firing rubber bullets at demonstrators outside the Staples Center during the Democratic National Convention. The police officers looked menacing in riot gear that consisted of helmets and face masks, dark bullet-proof vests, and batons clutched across their chests when they weren’t swinging at protesters. “The new ads are an improvement over the last ad campaign, whose posters I still have,” said defense attorney Stephen Yagman, who makes a career of suing the LAPD for violating individuals’ civil rights. He has filed 19 cases related to the Rampart scandal, is preparing 40 more cases and is reviewing another 130. “But the present ad campaign seems to be a bunch of righteous propaganda to try to present a false image of the LAPD.” Better than the last one A few years ago, the LAPD launched a billboard campaign during another recruitment drive that depicted two cops, one black and one white, clasping hands. Underneath the photo, the caption read: “Join the LAPD. You can be a Lethal Weapon 2.” Other critics agree that the new campaign is an improvement over the old one. “I know they are trying to diversify by hiring more women and more people of color. Obviously, there are a lot of people in these groups that aren’t attracted to a baton-wielding image. So I think it is important for them to reach these people if they are going to diversify the force,” said Bryce Nelson, a journalism professor at USC and a former L.A. Times reporter who was a member of the Christopher Commission, which examined how to improve the LAPD after the 1992 Rodney King riots. At a time when Los Angeles County’s unemployment rate is the lowest it has been in 11 years, everyone is having a difficult time finding good employees. The LAPD is no different. And it has a lot of vacancies. The department is looking to fill 700 to 1,000 jobs this year, said Cmdr. Betty Kelepecz, the LAPD’s lead recruiter. It is also trying to diversify by attracting more women and more minorities. Currently there are 9,323 officers on the force. Police Chief Bernard Parks, when launching the ad campaign in July, admitted the department has an image problem, but it needs individuals with the people skills to work well with the community. While the police department couldn’t specify how many people have responded to the campaign, advertising executives at Duncan & Associates said they were told the police department had to put in an extra phone to handle all the calls coming in. “We knew this was going to be a challenge, given the kind of press the police department has gotten,” said Sandy Jones, one of two creative directors on the pro bono project. “But we felt we could make a difference in getting good people on the force.” From grocery stores to cops Normally, Duncan & Associates handles ads for grocery-store chain Albertsons. But Hugh Duncan, chief executive of the agency, said Ron Rogers of Century City P.R. agency Rogers & Associates approached him last fall about coming up with some positive ads for recruitment. At the time, the Police Department had little money for recruitment advertising. It was allotted $1 million in its new budget on July 1. “Apparently we struck the right chord,” Duncan said. “The response rate, we heard, has been 10 times the regular rate.” Jones said it was an eye opener for the ad people to listen to the 75 to 100 officers they surveyed, who explained why they chose their careers. “We all have these fears that cops are out to get us, and we saw behind that,” she said. “They are very proud of what they do and proud to be part of that organization.”

For some, the American dream may now be as close as the nearest bus stop. A new program that loosens the home mortgage lending requirements for those who are willing to locate close to public transportation is about to roll out in Los Angeles. The program, developed by two environmental groups along with Countrywide Home Loans and Fannie Mae, offers homebuyers mortgages of up to $50,000 more than they would qualify for under standard lending guidelines. The rationale for the program is that, by using public transportation instead of their cars for much of their daily travel, people can save enough money to afford higher monthly mortgage payments. Although a number of L.A. neighborhoods qualify for the loan program, the agencies pinpointed Long Beach, North Hollywood and Van Nuys as areas that offer the greatest potential savings for users of public transit, in excess of $100 a month. “We conducted research that says people who live near public transit own fewer cars and save more money,” said Gloria Ohland, Southern California project manager for the Surface Transportation Policy Project, a nonprofit environmental group that initiated the program with the Natural Resources Defense Council. “We’re trying to provide a pocketbook incentive for people to change their behavior.” Unable to afford houses in urban areas, first-time homebuyers traditionally have been forced to look farther and farther from the city center, increasing the distance they commute to work and contributing to traffic congestion and air pollution. Questions remain whether the loan program can really help reverse that trend. In Seattle, where an identical program rolled out last November, only about four loans have closed, according to Dianne Wasson, vice president and manager of affinity lending at HomeStreet Bank, which is participating. And even the program’s leaders say that the task of getting people out of their cars may be more difficult in Los Angeles than in denser cities. “It’s different when you live in Chicago,” said Barbara Zeidman, who works on targeting loan programs in Los Angeles for Fannie Mae. “It’s unrealistic to think that someone who lives in Southern California won’t have a car.” The idea for the so-called “location-efficient mortgage” was hatched about 10 years ago by David B. Goldstein, energy program director for the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco, when he began shopping for a home. Goldstein’s income didn’t allow him to qualify for most homes in the Bay Area, but he knew he had enough disposable income to cover the payments. Also, he believed that the difference in what he earned and the mortgage he could afford boiled down to savings he and his family reaped by relying heavily on public transportation. At the same time, Goldstein realized that friends in similar situations were moving farther and farther out of town, adding an hour or more to their commute, in order to find an affordable home. “It was obvious at the time that they were trading less housing costs for more transportation costs, even though we couldn’t put a number on it,” Goldstein said. “We recognized that urban sprawl was happening in part not because people wanted to live in the suburbs, but because banks were forcing them to do that if they wanted to own their own home.” Eventually, the NRDC and the Surface Transportation Policy Project secured a grant to study transportation spending patterns and, in 1998, the groups took the hard numbers to Countrywide and Fannie Mae, which has set aside $100 million to pilot the program for the next year. The program works this way: Each neighborhood is assigned a location-efficient value, which is a calculation of how much money a family is likely to save on transportation based on family size and income, the availability of housing in the area, and the proximity to public transit and other amenities like shops and restaurants. In general, a location must be within a quarter mile from a bus stop and one-half mile from a rail stop to be considered for the program. Also taken into account is how often the public transit service stops near these neighborhoods. The maximum allowed mortgage is then calculated taking these savings into account. For example, a couple with an annual income of $50,000 buying a house in an area of Van Nuys near public transit would, based on income alone, qualify for a mortgage of about $139,000 with a $7,000 down payment. That same couple, under a location-efficient mortgage, would qualify for a loan of nearly $173,000 with a little more than $5,000 down. “Every neighborhood will have some mortgage efficiency value. But the areas eligible are ones where the savings are predicted to be more than $100 a month,” said Dennis Zane, whose firm, Urban Dimension, served as a consultant to the Surface Transportation Policy Project. The program has already rolled out in San Francisco and Chicago, in addition to Seattle, but progress has been spotty, in part because the agencies have no marketing budget to tout the loans. In Los Angeles, where Countrywide began offering the loans in April, there are no hard numbers yet, but officials say only a few have been written. “It’s rolling out slowly,” said Dottie Sheppick, Countrywide’s senior vice president for developing markets. “I think as it gets better known and people understand who will fit into the program, we’ll be able to qualify more people.” Sheppick believes that those most likely to take advantage of the program will be families already relying heavily on public transit, rather than those willing to give it a try in order to afford more-expensive housing. But lack of awareness and the limited acceptance of public transportation are not the only problems in Los Angeles. An equally daunting issue here is the fact that Countrywide is not a “jumbo” lender, meaning all its loans are backed by Fannie Mae and thus they have a ceiling of $252,000. Ironically, many of the neighborhoods that are labeled most location efficient, like Sherman Oaks and Santa Monica, have average home prices well in excess of that cap. The agencies are working to add other banks, such as Bank of America, which write “jumbo” loans in excess of $252,000, but so far only Countrywide and HomeStreet Bank in Seattle have signed on to offer the mortgages. “I think it’s going to be a slow start,” said Zeidman of Fannie Mae. “But eventually, in the next two years, it will be a hot mortgage product.”

Derek Cupanic started Canoga Park-based Computer Doctor in 1985, when far fewer people were buying computers. Back then, the company sold hardware and software. But with the emergence of much larger competitors like Best Buy and Fry’s that offer very low prices, smaller computer retailers have had to change their line of business to survive. Now Computer Doctor mainly repairs computers and trains people on how to use them. Cupanic spoke to reporter Jennifer Netherby recently about his business. “I have been doing this for over 20 years now. We do data retrieval, we fix computers, replace parts. I started the business after being disabled in a construction accident. Two weeks after the Mac came out, I built my own computer. We started Computer Doctor originally to build and sell computers. Then we changed and handled upgrades, and then repairs. “Business has changed over the last 15 years from selling hardware and software to teaching people to use e-mail and the Internet. We’ve gone from heavy hardware sales to support. Our customers are everybody. We have businesses, home users, movie studios, celebrities a lot of celebrities. We don’t work on mainframe. We mainly help fix PCs. “Usually the problem is a virus or someone trying to do an upgrade or something that didn’t work. We’re like forensic doctors. We also do a lot of computer tune-ups. After being used for six months or more, a lot of stuff ends up on a computer that people don’t know how to get rid of, that makes the computer crash or wastes space. We clean it up and put things back where they should be. “Most repairs range between $100 and $300. More than that and it’s not economical. We recommend they upgrade to a new computer. “Who is our competition? Most of the big stores (Comp USA, Fry’s) are for new buyers. Our competitors are other small repair shops. We’re not like your regular computer repair shop. Most shops focus on replacing parts. We diagnose the problem and fix it. “We also do tutoring. It’s mostly for somebody who just bought a new computer and doesn’t have a clue how to use it. They usually just want to know how to use it safely.”

While cargo volume is soaring at other local airports, it has suddenly and inexplicably taken a nose-dive at Burbank Airport. For the first six months of the year, Burbank suffered a 16 percent drop in cargo volume, from 45.2 million pounds in the first half of 1999 to 38 million for the like period this year. And the drop was not confined to one or two carriers it is spread evenly among all major airlines and overnight delivery services. Federal Express and United Parcel Service, for example, saw their cargo volumes drop by 19.4 percent and 17.5 percent, respectively, during the first six months of 2000. Alaska Airlines saw a 29.4 percent drop and United Airlines’ volume went down by 9.1 percent. The only major carrier that saw an increase in Burbank Airport cargo from January through June was Southwest Airlines, whose volume rose by 6.2 percent from the 1999 period. At the same time, the number of passengers at the airport has stayed pretty much flat from last year, and there has been no comparable decrease in the number of flights. All this raises the question of why Burbank has fallen out of favor as a cargo airport, and airport officials threw up their hands last week when asked for an explanation. “We don’t really have an answer that fits the facts,” said Victor Gill, a spokesman for the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority. “It seems more than just normal market fluctuations because the overall volume of air cargo in and out of Southern California has not come down.” In fact, total cargo volume at LAX is up 9 percent for the first six months, and at Ontario International it’s up 9.1 percent. While cargo volume is generally expressed as the aggregate of incoming and outgoing cargo, the volume of incoming cargo has increased dramatically at Ontario by 21 percent for this period, whereas incoming cargo at Burbank dropped 27.2 percent. This suggests that Ontario may be receiving a lot of shipments that previously went to Burbank. “That could be part of the explanation,” said Bob Godlewski, a spokesman for UPS in Atlanta.

With technological improvements, our workforce encounters conditions such as sore necks, aching backs and painful wrists. These ailments affect employees of all companies, large and small. Companies that are subject to the jurisdiction of the Occupational Safety Hazard Association (OSHA) may be subject to visits and/or lawsuits for what they call ergonomic,hazard complaints fromm employees. Companies that are not subject to OSHA can expect to learn of their employees who suffer from these ailments. These employees will lose work time and cause a very dramatic and negative impact on productivity because small companies cannot afford to overcome absences, and face increases in medical insurance premiums as a result of these problems. Every company should establish a program to educate employees to identify environmental hazards and to develop strategies to reduce hazards and monitor the results. As a company leader who wears many hats, you might include that of “safety officer” who will review safety practices and policies of your company. You might include informal sessions with some of your key employee who can develop prevention and remediation strategies. Ergonomics should be integrated into all aspects of your operation including: 1 the purchase of furnishings and technical equipment; 2 maintenance and installation of equipment and furnishings; 3 health-safety practices-policies; 4 loss-prevention strategies; 5 management and staff training; 6 new-employee orientation to the work environment. To limit lost work days, consider the following steps: Encourage prompt reporting of employee’s complaints of physical symptoms consistent with cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs). Physical symptoms of muscular skeletal disorders may include numbness, tingling, swelling, painful specific motions, and loss of strength capacity. Maintain some sort of log in order to study the kind of disorders that are occurring and their frequency, and note the attribution to specific tasks. Physical risk factors for muscular/skeletal CTDs occur when exposure is of a prolonged duration, of great intensity or high frequency. They result from: 1 static postures; 2 Bending postures which include flexing, twisting, or extending the spine, back end or neck; flexing, twisting, deviating or extending wrists; elevating or rounding the shoulder forward; working with the elbows out from the sides of the body; excessive reaches in front, across or in back of the body; 3 grasping or pinching activities of the hands/fingers; 4 repetitive motion without adequate recovery intervals; 5 forceful exertions; 6 contact pressures on parts of the body, reducing circulation and nerve stimulation; 7 cold; and 8 vibration. If physical risk factors appear prominently, you should consider modifying or redesigning work stations, furnishings, equipment or addition of accessories. Study the procedures and attempt to improve work techniques and habits. Rotate the staff to shift the work so that no one person is involved continuously with the risk factors. Provide personnel with protective equipment. Provide therapy and education to improve work or function and work practices. Consider retaining the services of an occupational health clinic with a staff that is especially trained to deal with ergonomic issues, thereby paying only when the services are required. Summary: Record accurately occupational illnesses and injuries associated with ergonomic hazards. Recognize trends and the need for intervention. Try to establish standard procedures for managing work-related illnesses and injuries, including guidelines for identifying the need for medical treatment and subsequent ergonomic modifications or controls. Finally, create work modifications or job alternatives during the recovery phase of an illness consistent with the physical capacities determined by appropriate medical personnel. As you perform a walk-through of your operation, observe employees at their work stations. Be especially mindful of stressful postures or positions. Be especially alert for a neck bent forward or backward or tilted to one side; hands grasping on an object tightly for long periods of time; back bent forward, backward or leaning to one side; wrists bent in an upward, down or side to side position; arms held in an extended position, especially reaching above shoulder height or behind back. Organizations like Quill in Lincolnshire, IL have created analyses and charts to provide greater comfort, less physical demands and greater work output. John Dowd is a freelancer based in Calabasas.

Improve conditions at the office and you’ll have happier, healthier workers,and higher productivity. Rather than wait for more legislation to mandate conditions at the office, you can begin planning right now to implement a comprehensive ergonomic strategy that will improve employee morale and boost your bottom line. Since the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is taking an active role in the implementation of ergonomically correct workplaces, certain rules do apply. In a paper presented by OSHA representatives at the National Safety Council’s Symposium of Ergonomics, they outlined warning signs to look for when developing an ergonomics program. Following are some hints on determining if there are problem areas in your office. Lighting Some simple visual checks can help determine if office lighting is suitable: a. Check for monitor or shiny surface glare. b. Can the computer users control the light level in their area? c. Hold your hand over a white piece of paper on your desk; if you see head and/or hand shadows overhead, lights are the culprit. d. Shade your eyes with your hand; if the lighting appears to improve, it isn’t good lighting. e. Hold your hand about 10 inches from your desk; if you see a sharp, defined shadow your lighting is too harsh. There are two types of lighting commonly used in the office direct and indirect. Each type has its own unique health and safety advantages and disadvantages. Direct overhead light fixtures, or luminaires, are fluorescent with either a prismatic lens or parabolic louvers. Prismatic lenses are the least expensive and the most common office light fixtures. Prismatic luminaires have the advantage of producing uniform light in a room. Their disadvantage is they are a source of direct glare for users and computer monitors. Parabolic fixtures use a variety of parabolic louvers from plastic panes with small squares to fixtures that have large cells integral to the fixture. Prismatic luminaires direct the light down and in a shallower angle, reducing the amount of direct and reflected glare. The disadvantage of this type of light fixture is being able to look directly into the bright light source because of the shallow light angle. Indirect lighting is accomplished by reflecting light from a white ceiling. The result is a pleasant, soft illumination that reduces glare throughout the entire office. The recent introduction of furniture-integrated lighting makes the total design process easier and, in most cases, less expensive. When looking at your overall lighting situation, consider the needs of the workers. If your people need more light and do not work at terminals, consider moving them close to a window if possible. Reorientation of work areas to reduce either direct or indirect glare is another low-cost alternative to a major office lighting overhaul. Look into replacing your existing lenses and/or looking at high-efficiency replacement bulbs. Chairs Proper posture when working depends largely on the type of chair being used. Questions to ask about your chairs include: a. Do the chairs adjust for individual needs? b. Do they provide lumbar support? c. Are foot rests provided for people whose feet don’t touch the floor? A general test for overall posture efficiency is to observe individuals seated at their terminals. Are they in a basically neutral position, which means the body is in alignment with minimal stress on joints or strain on muscles? In a neutral position, the wrists follow the plane of the arm without being bent or flexed and the spine is in its natural “S” curve (the same shape as when the individual is standing). Watch the individual’s seated positions in relation to each task. In keyboard-intensive work, like data input, users will tend to lean forward while those using data processing,which requires less keyboard activity,have a tendency y to lean back. If an area of your body is giving you discomfort, be aware that the solution may be ergonomically correctable. The American National Standards Institute, a standards-setting body, has specific recommendations for chair design and style. They cover everything from general seating to specific seat widths, heights, angles, and backrest specifications. Most chair manufacturers adhere to these standards, but if you’re considering new or replacement chairs, check with the manufacturer to see if they do. Work Surfaces There can be several variables here according to the task. Looking at your computer use data will help you determine what work surface is best for the task. Typically, a casual computer user may have a standard desk while the moderate user may find it more comfortable to have a wrist rest or adjustable keyboard surface. The intensive user may work best with a work surface specifically designed for computer users. Dual adjustable work surfaces have the ability to change separately both keyboard and work surface height. Two benefits are gained with this type of setup: 1. Individuals can adjust the work surface to suit their needs and comfort. 2. Stress is minimized by changing the work surface height during the day. Many office equipment manufacturers have furniture lines designed specifically for computer users. For example, Steelcase Furniture of Grand Rapids, MI, has a complete line of adjustable work surface furniture. In fact, some lines have a computer system that allows the operator to program automatic height changes over the course of a day. Another option when designing a work area is to take a modular approach. Here, work surface and lighting are integral to the work area and the design’s flexibility allows for easy alteration and adjustment. Another advantage with this type of system is the ability to set up work areas ergonomically correct for the task. This could end up cutting expenses in the long run. With correct lighting and a work surface independent of a total office environment, you have localized cost versus the cost of a complete office overhaul. Sound Another distracting and stressful problem is noise. In the computer environment, noise will commonly come from two sources, computers and impact printers (dot matrix and daisy wheel). Central Processing Unit (CPU): There is not much ergonomically that can be done with the CPU, but some power supplies are extremely noisy. Listening to the whine of the fan all day can become an irritation. There are units made that have low noise levels. When buying a new system, ask about what is furnished, and see if an alternative is available. When replacing power supplies, consider putting in a more quiet unit. Impact printers: Printer location is important for access and is limited in how far it can be from the sending terminal (unless on a network). Newer dot matrix printers have what is termed “quiet mode,” but print speed suffers. A better choice may be a printer shroud to help abate noise to acceptable levels. Several types are available with varying quieting characteristics to suit your particular need. Monitors Factors to consider in relation to monitors include: a. Are they at the recommended height, tilt, and viewing distance? b. Do they have a high-polished or etched face? c. Look at how the text is displayed. Most people favor dark characters on a light background; this display configuration seems to be the easiest on the eyes and for reading. Several types of glare-reducing screens are on the market. These range from a cloth mesh that covers the screen face to polarized screens. Often it is possible to reduce glare with a simple cardboard shield over the top of the monitor. Though it may be a temporary fix. it can reduce glare fatigue until you find a better solution. Finding the best solution depends on your particular situation and work need. Monitors may be a potential hazard in ELF (extremely low frequency) electromagnetic emissions. If this is a concern for you or your employees, several manufacturers produce screens that they claim will reduce or eliminate any potentially harmful emissions. There are other issues surrounding monitors. Much has been discussed and touted about resolution, dot pitch, interlaced, non-interlaced, and other monitor terminology. These factors are important, but before making a decision look at the task and the user. Using your workforce computer-use scorecard will help you determine the best monitor for the job. Keyboards Are keyboards in your office at the correct height? If the keyboard support surface is adjustable, ANSI recommends a height of from 23 to 28 inches. If it’s not adjustable, the height must accommodate the size of the largest person. There are several wrist rests and wrist supports being marketed to reduce stress on the wrist. Some are nothing more than a pad placed in front of the keyboard for support. Another form is a brace attached to the forearm that prevents bending of the wrist. A more dramatic approach is a complete redesign of the standard QWERTY keyboard. One ergonomic approach is a keyboard that has split halves, allowing the palms to face each other. This is a more natural and comfortable hand position. Each of these devices has its particular advantage and varying cost; the keyboard is the most expensive. If you decide on a wrist rest, look for one that is adjustable. Preventive Maintenance To make any program work, those involved must buy into it. The advantage a good ergonomic program has is its inherent goodwill theme,workers and management joining forces to improve workingg conditions for everyone. Productivity has a correlation to stress; reduce stress and productivity will benefit. The other element in this is personal well-being. Proper lighting, posture, and office environment will reduce time lost due to potentially debilitating problems. Look at ergonomics as a preventive maintenance program, reducing or eliminating hazards before they take their toll. Lori Carson is an Worksite Wellness Consultant based in Seattle.

My grandfather used to say that a girl needs time for herself. Girls have things they need to do. Today it is a frenzy to find time for “girls,” females, women to take time for themselves. European women have facials and massages beginning in their early teens. We, in America think it is a luxury we don’t deserve. The climate is changing, however and women are now realizing that the special time they spend “doing what they do” is vital to a well rounded life. It’s not about being skinny or looking like those anemic 12 year olds on the covers of the fashion magazines. It’s about HEALTH. We know we need to work out. We know we need to exercise to keep the blood flowing and the brain alert. We know we need some quiet time in a Yoga class or stretch in Pilates. We know our skin is subjected to pollution and dangerous sun rays and needs to be cared for to prevent early aging signs. We know that a massage is the best, ancient conditioning to keep muscles strong and the body in a stress reduced state. The best gyms and day spas, such as Total Woman, know all that too. We need a place where a girl can be a girl. Remember gym class in school? We are running so fast today, an instant world. The human body doesn’t do “instant.” It takes consistency. It takes a mind set to take better care of ourselves. Time to slow the pace, take that sacred time for yourself. That is Real Life. Before computers, faster and faster modems, more megabytes than we can handle, there were just people, human beings. The body and mind are always better when activated regularly. Important news flash, take care of the human first, give it some time to just be. Stop running for a few hours a week. Don’t forget beautiful you. You are important and a gift to this world. Take special care of that gift. Women today need to remember that when we take care of us first, everyone benefits. All our responsibilities fall into place and somehow they all get done. When we take care of us first they all get done without feeling overwhelmed. Life has a purpose and an order. The “order” starts with each of us first. We count. Everything else will still be there to take care of only now it will be done with health and happiness. That’s a fact. We don’t have to be perfect either, just be who we are, do whatever aerobic exercises feel right for you, or just do part of a class, don’t overwhelm yourself thinking you need to do everything. More pressure is not the answer. It’s about feeling good and being strong so we can handle those everyday chores. Relaxing is a part of it too. That is why Yoga is so wonderful. Breathing properly also sends oxygen to the brain so we can think more clearly. You are in there, in your body, you are the only one that can take good care of you. Adrienne Stone is with Total Woman Gym and Day Spa.

A decision by Sherman Oaks-based Sunkist Growers Association to market Argentine-grown lemons in the U.S. has some member growers questioning the coop’s move and arguing it could seriously harm local farmers. Growers in Ventura County, one of the state’s largest lemon producers, have been quietly rumbling that Sunkist’s move could flood the market, lowering lemon prices. “The fact is, they’re coming in,” said Sunkist spokeswoman Claire Peters. “As a marketer, this is the best way to benefit our members.” Peters said Sunkist growers will share in any profits the coop makes from the marketing of Argentina lemons. Sunkist doesn’t have estimates yet on how much money that would mean for growers. Sunkist signed an agreement to market 400,000 cartons of Argentine lemons for two of that country’s biggest grower-shippers, SA San Miguel and Cistrusvil SA. The decision follows a ruling in June by the USDA allowing Argentine growers to sell fruit in the U.S. Argentina is the largest lemon producer in the world, but has up to this point been barred from the U.S. market because of concerns that its fruit could spread disease to domestic citrus. Coinciding with Sunkist’s move is a lawsuit filed by California growers, many of them Sunkist members, challenging the USDA’s decision to allow Argentine lemons. The growers are represented by the Ventura County-based U.S. Citrus Science Council, whose suit claims Argentine growers are not taking steps required by the USDA to eradicate citrus disease and fruit flies that could spread to U.S. farms if the lemons are imported. “The USDA is suggesting you can bring in disease-free fruit from a diseased area,” said Joel Nelsen, vice chairman of the Citrus Council. “We believe they’re taking insufficient steps to protect citrus fruit production (in the U.S.).” The first Argentine lemons arrived in Philadelphia in mid-August. Sales of the produce will be limited to 34 states. The five U.S. citrus-producing states California, Arizona, Texas, Florida and Louisiana will not get Argentine fruit until 2004. That will give the government a chance to test the fruit for disease without spreading it to domestic citrus growers. The Argentine lemons represent a small fraction of the 20 million cartons Sunkist markets for its 6,500 growers in California and Arizona. Lemons were Ventura County’s largest crop until 1999, when strawberries knocked it out of the top slot. In 1999, the Ventura County lemon industry accounted for $201.6 million, said Deputy Agriculture Commissioner Dave Buettner. Grower reaction to Sunkist’s decision has been mixed, Buettner said. “In the long run, someone is going to sell those lemons, whether it’s Sunkist or some other organization,” Buettner said. “Sunkist can at least govern where it goes.” Lemon prices were higher last year than in previous years, Buettner said.