Workplace Health and Safety

What does Workplace Health and Safety mean for your business and your employees?

 

A safe and healthy workplace is essential for every business. Ensuring that your employees are protected from various hazards is important as they are the most valuable asset in your business.

Office workers tend to develop accumulative type injuries. Usually from sitting for too long, sometimes standing for too long, being at the keyboard for too long, not having their workstation set up properly for them, inadequate breaks and limited variety of tasks. Of course other injuries occur in all workplaces when the workplace has hazards like steps where there should be no steps, other tripping hazards, poor lighting, faulty equipment or poorly maintained equipment, having enough room for workers to move around freely without bumping into things etc.

In an office this can be as simple as:

1

Providing supportive seating if your employees sit during their job.

2

Providing stand up desks or desks that you can sit or stand at to limit the amount of sitting that your employees do.

3

Ensuring that your employees are able to get up from their desk every hour so that they do not develop pain from accumulative stresses that can occur when maintaining one posture for too long.

4

Getting a physio to give some gentle stretches and exercises that each employee can do to ensure their body is ready for their job.

5

Having an area where your employees can perform their exercises during the day and making sure that they have the time to do this.

All of these strategies may help to not only improve your employees performance but can help to avoid compensation claims from injury.

Of course, there are other types of workplaces. We see a lot of office work injuries in our practice but we see more injury claims within the more active sectors of the working community.

Large companies like Bunnings, Woolies, Coles, Ikea, Costco, Amart, Brisbane Markets and The airports all have their fair share of injuries that come through. It is essential for the managers of these large businesses to have plans in place that will help to keep their workers pain free and working more effectively.

Lifting heavy objects can be a serious injury risk so, all workers in these types of businesses need to be educated in the best ways to not only lift objects but how to effectively push, pull, reach, use step ladders and other equipment that they need to operate during their workday. 

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Physiotherapists with experience can come into the workplace and assess each individual and teach them how to lift, push, pull and do all the tasks that they are required to do in their job safely.

It is essential to get expert advice on this. Easy programs can then be designed with the worker’s tasks in mind in order to help them to be able to perform their tasks safely and effectively.

It is also important for workers who need to perform physical tasks to have a certain level of cardiovascular fitness. A holistic approach is very important for these workers to have longevity within their careers.

In a large workplace that requires their workers to perform manual tasks simple and effective strategies could be:

1

Ensuring that there is a weight limit that workers lift.

2

Teach correct lifting along with back care education, preferably by a physio as they are the movement experts.

3

Ensuring that workers get a variety of tasks to perform, so not all lifting or not all forklift driving.

4

Ensuring your workers get enough time to rest, recuperate and perform some gentle stretches and exercises during the day that will help them to get through their working day.

5

Providing a space where workers can wind down or perform their exercises during the day.

6

Giving the workers access to information on a regular basis that will help to keep them constantly educated with regards to how to maintain a strong and healthy body.

A physiotherapist with experience in workplace setups can come to check out how your business operates and identify any potential problems that may arise. You can also access monthly newsletters to your workplace with advice on a regular basis in order to keep the workers up to date.

You can also integrate a physiotherapist designed program for your workers to follow in order to maintain their strength, mobility and endurance for the tasks that they need to perform.

Here at Pain Slayers Graceville physiotherapy, we are committed to helping local businesses to keep their employees pain free and performing at their best.

To organise a workplace set up and or a program for your workers to reduce the of injuries in the workplace call us on 07 3278 1186.

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