I think we are generally in agreement that standing in front of a blast furnace all day would suck pretty badly. But I am not sure such work must always be miserable. To be fair I have never worked with a blast furnace, but I don't see why someone's job should be to do the same thing every day for years on end. Management should switch up worker roles frequently, perhaps multiple times a day if the task is particularly odious. And if there are ergonomic or environmental reasons it isn't tolerable or safe, those reasons should be addressed, such as providing better PPE or custom built tools.
Adding extra incentives is part of making factory work sustainable in the long run, but it's going to take more than an extra $(insert number)/hour to make workers safe and happy. And I really don't think we should give up on trying to make factory workers safe and happy.