Did you know that one out of four Americans experiences lower back pain? The same CDC report found that roughly 20% of these cases were caused by work-related reasons (however, the actual figure is likely quite higher).
If you’re an employer, you’re likely scratching your head, thinking of ways to avoid this problem. The solution lies in ergonomics. But exactly how can ergonomics impact health and safety in the workplace?
Prevent Workplace Injury and Employee Pain
It doesn’t matter if your workplace is an office or a factory; your employees can experience pain from repetitive movements.
Some common things that cause pain in the workplace include things like:
- Bent awkward postures for prolonged periods
- Frequent bending and reaching
- Small seats that don’t provide any support
- No neck support
- A bent wrist from frequent repetitive movements
Ergonomics experts can provide solutions in the form of new products and education.
Fewer Serious Workplace Injuries
Often when we think of serious injuries in the workplace, we picture traumatic injuries that result from slipping and falling. However, the reality is that serious injuries can occur just from sitting for too long.
One Havard study found habitual inactivity can result in conditions like diabetes, metabolic syndrome, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and deep-vein thrombosis.
And that just comes from sitting still. When you combine this inactivity with musculoskeletal injuries that occur from repetitive movement at work, you have a recipe for disaster.
In the best-case scenario, your worker will have to miss a few days or weeks of work.
Worst-case scenario, you lose them for a prolonged period of workers’ compensation claims. Investing in ergonomics in the office ensures that these serious workplace injuries never occur.
How to Implement Ergonomics into Your Workplace
We’ve learned why ergonomics is essential for a healthy office. We recommend hiring an ergonomic expert for the task. These individuals provide a lot of different services.
First, you can engage them in end-to-end ergonomic consultations. Or, if you want to test your current ergonomic systems, you can hire them for an ergonomic assessment. Lastly, education and training services ensure that you and your employees know proper safety techniques to minimize pain and injuries when working. Not only does it show that you care about your employees’ health and safety, but it can also save you a lot of money in the long run.
Courtesy SolutionsNW.com. Article available here.
