Bahram Kouhnavard - Instructor, Department of Occupational Health Engineering, Schoolof Health, Larestan University Medical Sciences, Larestan, Iran
Gholamhossein Halvani - Assistant Professore of Occupational Health Engineering, Department of Ergonomics, School of Public Health, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
Mohammad Reza Najimi - Instructor, Department of Occupational Health Engineering, Schoolof Health, Larestan University Medical Sciences, Larestan, Iran
Hamideh Mihanpour - MSc of Occupational Health Engineering, Instructor, Faculty of Paramedicine Abarkouh, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran

Background: The basis of welfare and health in all individuals is their work ability. Many factors such as work and working conditions, fatigue, and individual characteristics affect the work ability. In the present study, we evaluated the work ability among workers employed in a ceramic industry and determined the relationship between fatigue areas. Methods: The present study was a descriptive cross-sectional study. 200 subjects were randomly selected and investigated. This study was conducted using two standard questionnaires of Work Ability Index (WAI) and Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI). Data were analyzed by SPSS software. Results: Mean general fatigue score was of 9.65 (SD=2.88) and the mean motivation score was 7.11 (SD=2.45). There was a significant difference in fatigue in different job groups in terms of work experience (P <0.05). The mean of fatigue in different occupational groups was higher for those without experience than those with skill. The mean of the work ability index was 39.69 (good level). The highest correlation was found between the score of work ability index and fatigue index among job titles belonging to the operational group (r = 0.97). Conclusion: With the increase of the fatigue score, the score of the work ability index decreased. Better recognition of factors creating fatigue and providing appropriate strategies can be effective in reducing this factor.

Work Ability Index, Ceramic Industry, Fatigue, Occupational health