These should be reassessed annually, or as required.
Stage 1: Identify the manual handling risks.
Are manual tasks/situations carried out in the workplace? Examples could be:
• Overexertion and overreaching
• Repetitive movement
• Sustained and/or awkward posture
• Whole body vibration
• Poor workplace design
Stage 2: Redesign the workplace
Minimise manual handling risks by assessing the workplace and changing any processes/equipment which will make the job less stressful on employees.
In an office environment, this would include condition/position of:
• Chairs
• Workstations
• Keyboard/Mouse
• Monitor
Consider staff members who wear reading glasses, when placing monitors.
An ergonomic specialist can be a useful person to bring in, to assess your individual workplace.
In a factory environment, this would require a complete assessment of the factory/site and possibly replacing equipment/machinery or installing lifting devices or ramps. Things to consider:
- What is the weight of object being lifted?
- Can it be lifted mechanically?
- How often is an item required to be lifted or moved?
- Who are the employee(s) lifting the objects?
- Is there a better place the object could be located, for ease of manual handling?
- Would it be helpful to bring in a specialist in factory design?
Stage 3: Educate the employees
Train workers how to use plant, objects, substances, equipment, and relevant PPE safely.
Send employees for specific training in manual handling, if their role requires them to do so frequently.
All workers must be specifically trained in correct techniques for manual handling jobs. They need to know:
- No one should lift something that is too heavy for them. Ask for help
- To lift with the legs, not the back. And not to twist, or lift while in an awkward position
- About keeping the load in front and close to the body
- To use mechanical/lifting aids where possible
- To plan regular breaks and rotate jobs, if possible