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Issue 05 · November 2026
humanhoist.com
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Issue 05 · Industrial Edition
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Built for the Work Ahead
Washington State is writing new ergonomics rules, overexertion tops the list of America’s costliest injuries again, and aviation needs 123,000 more technicians. Here’s what it means for your floor.
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Regulation · Aviation
Preparing for the Next Chapter in Workplace Ergonomics
Washington State is writing its first ergonomics rules since 2003. Aviation is first in line.
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In 2023, Washington gave its Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) the authority to write ergonomics rules again, one industry at a time. The first industry selected is scheduled airline ground crews, a group that includes baggage handlers and maintenance workers.
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11.2x
Ground Crew MSD Claim
Rate vs. State Average
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45.8
Claims per 1,000 Workers
(State Average: 4.1)
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Nov 18
Next Advisory
Committee Meeting
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Where it stands. L&I opened rulemaking in October 2024 and has been working with an advisory committee of airline employers and labor representatives ever since. No proposed rule has been published yet, and fulfillment centers are next in line.
What the process is telling us. Worker input is shaping the rules, and each one is built to fit its industry. The law also leaves room for employers who can document alternative controls that work at least as well. The takeaway: listen to the people doing the job, fit the fix to the task, and write down what you learn.
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The Human Hoist Answer
Where Human Hoist fits
That’s how we already work.
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The Professional Stool raises and lowers technicians to the task with the push of a button, which reduces the kneeling, squatting, and constant height changes that low work demands. |
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WorkAbility walks your team through identifying, evaluating, trialing, and documenting, so you have a written record of what changed. |
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On-site trials put the equipment in your technicians’ hands on real tasks, so the decision is based on your floor, not our brochure. |
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Human Hoist is not affiliated with Washington L&I. This article summarizes public rulemaking information and is not legal or compliance advice.
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The Costliest Injury in America Isn’t a Fall
Every year, Liberty Mutual ranks the causes of the most serious workplace injuries by what they cost employers. For the 2026 index, the top spot belongs to overexertion: lifting, pushing, pulling, holding, and carrying.
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$13.07B
Annual U.S. Workers’ Comp
Cost of Overexertion
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#1
Cost Driver in 5 of the
8 Industries Studied
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4x
Overexertion vs. Roadway
Crashes in Transportation
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Why it matters. Overexertion is the top cost driver in manufacturing and in transportation and warehousing, where much of our audience works. Most of these injuries come from everyday tasks repeated hundreds of times: reaching under a frame, kneeling at a fixture, holding a tool overhead. These are positioning problems, and positioning problems have engineering solutions.
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The Human Hoist Answer
Engineering the lift out of the task
The best way to cut overexertion is to stop asking the body to make up for a bad working height. The Professional Stool brings the worker to the work: up for assembly at the bench, down for inspection at ground level, and rolling between stations without standing up. Customers are already using it to put an employee back to work, speed up assembly, and support maintenance and inspection, as we shared last issue.
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The Technician Shortage Is an Ergonomics Problem
Aviation maintenance needs people, and it will keep needing them. Boeing’s latest outlook projects that North America will need 123,000 new maintenance technicians through 2044. New graduates won’t replace decades of hands-on experience overnight, which makes the technicians already on your hangar floor some of the most valuable people in the industry.
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The Human Hoist Answer
Keeping your best technicians on the floor
Our demo units with major U.S. carriers are focused on the tasks that wear technicians down: low inspections, gear and wheel work, and repeated kneeling on concrete. The Professional Stool brings technicians to the work at the right height. When someone is returning from an injury or working under restrictions, WorkAbility gives safety and HR teams a documented path to keep them productive instead of sidelined.
The most experienced technician you have is the one you already employ. Let’s keep them working.
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Find Us at PRI
Indianapolis · Dec 10–12 · Booth 5335
We’re heading to Indianapolis for the PRI Show, December 10–12. Stop by Booth 5335 to see our positioning equipment in person and talk through the tasks in your shop that keep people on their knees.
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Ready to Talk?
Let’s Look at Your Floor Together
Every workplace has a task that wears people down. Tell us yours, and we’ll help you find out whether powered positioning is the right fix.
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Personal Positioning Technologies, LLC
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Sources: Washington State Dept. of Labor & Industries (2024 release; Nov. 2025 eligibility report; rulemaking page); RCW 49.17.520; Liberty Mutual 2026 Workplace Safety Index; Boeing Pilot and Technician Outlook.
© 2026 HumanHoist · Personal Positioning Technologies, LLC · All rights reserved
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