Is your Place of Work Hazardous??

We read in the ‘Executive PA’ recently an interesting article about the Top 10 hazards in a workplace. We’ve summarised this for you;

1. Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) “The same old routine”; we all know what it is but good posture and limiting time in stressful working conditions can help prevent or halt the progress of the disorder.

2. Under Pressure; Not dealing with pressure in the workplace can lead to stress which affects performance. 30-40% of absences from work are stress related and as many as 5million people in the UK admit to being stressed at work.

3. Back Pain; is the biggest single cause of sickness resulting in absence in the UK. Wow, didn’t know that! The Dept of Health put a conservative estimate of 11 million working days lost each year due to back pain.

4. A sight for sore eyes!; Working at a computer requires constant eye movement and re-focusing. This stresses the muscles and can lead to vision problems. 46% of office workers spend six or more hours in front of their computer screens a day and the majority (51%) of these are not scheduling appropriate breaks. Guidance from the (HSE) suggests it's better to take shorter breaks more often (eg; a 5-10 minute break after 50-60 minutes continuous screen and/or keyboard work).

5. Are you getting your 5-A-Day? What you eat has a direct impact on how well your brain works. Make sure you eat at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day and drink plenty of water.

6. Germs! With more and more of us lunching at our desks it’s important that we regularly clean our workstations and in particular our keyboards. A recent Which? Computer study found a computer keyboard can harbour five terms more bacteria, such as E.coli, than a toilet. OMG, that is gross!

7. Long Hours sat at your desk; Recent studies have shown that working at a desk for eight hours a day or spending three successive hours or more sitting down can double the risk of you getting a blood clot. Although most commonly associated with long haul flights Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) in the workplace is becoming more common.

8. Common Cold; Coughs & sneezes …. spread diseases. The office is the perfect environment for a virus to thrive and although there is still no cure for the common cold there are things you can do to minimise the risk of getting one. A healthy immune system is vital to keeping coughs and colds at bay. Make sure your workplace is well ventilated, there is nothing a virus likes more than a stuffy room crammed full of stressed people!

9. The Office Printer; Research has found that office printers could damage your health. Printer inks are known to contain carcinogens which can affect a person’s health in much the same way as passive smoking. Really? That’s a new one on me!

10. Office Smog; Research by Imperial College London has found that the electronic “smog” generated by electrical office equipment may be exposing workers to raised levels of pollutants and bacteria.

As a HR Professional you will need to be aware of all of these issues to be in a position to carry out your role effectively, and ensuring everyone else in the company does the same. With more emphasis than ever before on employers’ ‘duty of care’ it is essential that companies constantly monitor the health and safety of their employers and ensure that management are not unwittingly neglecting the health and safety of their staff. At the very least, this could lead to absenteeism but it could also result in costly compensation claims and damaged reputations.