H and L Office Furniture on occupational Safety:
Occupational Safety is a large concern of corporations across Australia, but some believe they are immune from workplace injuries because they are not in a dangerous environment. It is not often a fear that someone going into a Sydney high-rise office to spend eight hours on a computer at his or her workstation will be the subject of an injury complaint. But office injuries are becoming more and more prevalent.
There is a category of workplace injuries called no-accident injuries. Many of these cases are comprised of back strain and neck injuries. Most of them could have been easily avoided by having the proper office furniture. Although insisted upon, the bodies do not want to stay in the same position hour after hour. That is not how humans were built.
Humans were created as hunters and gatherers, always on the move, and staying in the same spot for prolonged periods of time can cause strain and tightening of muscles, especially if already they are put in unnatural positions.
Office workers should try to get up and take walks around the office. This should be done at least every 2-3 hours. It does not have to be along walk, but enough to get the blood flowing and keep the muscles from tensing up and tightening. For those who cannot get up that frequently, they can use workstation exercises to get the body moving. A neck roll and straightening and bending of the legs a few times can help.
When it comes to the office chair, an ergonomic chair is the ideal option. These are chairs that were specifically created to make sure the back, neck, bottom, and arms have the support they need to avoid stress and strain. This is especially important for employees who have a history of neck or back problems.
An employee who has this type of medical history can request the company for one. Once the user is seated in the chair, if the feet are not touching the ground, a footrest is needed. The ideal seated position will have legs and body at perfect 90-degree angles. This will limit the pull on lower back from the weight of the legs.
If the workday is mostly on the computer it is important to have the arms at a comfortable level, just slightly above the top of the office desk to type on the keyboard. This position will limit strain on wrists, shoulders and neck.
Where the computer monitor is placed also makes a difference. Many people have the monitor just behind the keyboard. While this seems to make sense when looked at the workstation, this is not the ideal position for the neck's health having to keep looking up and back down at the monitor and keyboard. Try pushing the monitor back a foot or so. When the monitor is moved back on the desk, the eyes can float back and forth between the keyboard and the monitor without forcing the neck to move up and down at the same time.
A few minor adjustments of the posture and the items at an office workstation can be the difference between a productive workday, and a body with pain and strain.
