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| Holiday Ergonomics: Because Giving Should Feel Good |
Many of your workers are likely undertaking a strenuous off-the-job activity this month: Gift-giving!
It’s true that it’s better to give than to receive, but sometimes giving hurts. Why? Because buying, wrapping and delivering gifts all involve lifting, twisting, awkward positioning and repetitive actions, and these can all lead to ergonomic injuries.
Share with your workers these few tips on how to comfortably embrace the gift-giving season—without the stiff shoulders, aching back and tight jaw. Consider it our little gift to you.
Buying Gifts
- Before and after shopping, do some stretching.
- At the mall, get a locker so you don't have to carry around mounds of packages.
- If lockers aren’t available, plan trips to your car to store packages.
- Take breaks every 45 minutes.
- Don’t drink coffee during the breaks. Instead, drink some water and eat a light salad and fruit.
Wrapping Gifts
- Vary your positions. Stand at a table to wrap the first present, sit on a chair to wrap the next present, wrap the next present while sitting on the bed, and so on.
- Don’t sit on a hard floor to wrap presents.
- Stretch before and after wrapping.
Delivering Gifts by Car
- Don’t grip the steering wheel. This creates muscle fatigue in the arms, wrists and hands. Alternate between a tight and loose grip to improve circulation in your hands.
- Reduce eye fatigue and tension headaches by varying your focal point while driving. (But always keep your eyes on the road.)
- Adjust the seat so you are as close to the steering wheel as comfortably possible, with your knees slightly higher than your hips.
- Use a back support.
- Prolonged sitting in a car builds up pressure in the blood vessels in your lower legs. Help keep the blood flowing properly by contracting and relaxing the muscles.
- Stretch your toes as wide as possible to the count of 10. Tighten your calf, thigh and gluteal muscles to the count of five.
- Roll your shoulders forward and back, as well as up and down, and avoid drafts on your neck and shoulders.
- Breathe deeply.
Gift-giving may be good for the heart, but it can also be hard on the body. Don’t shop ‘til you drop. Prepare yourself for as you would for any strenuous activity—with a healthy diet, plenty of water and lots of stretches.
Awkward movement and static postures can put strain on the body. When you add lifting heavy objects or performing repetitive motions, the possibility of an injury increases. Help your workers learn how to avoid long term pain and serious injury with this ergonomics safety meeting . (Subscription to SafetySmart Online is required to access this page.)
Want to Try SafetySmart Online? Request a Free Demo
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| Hitching a ride on the side of an excavator being driven through traffic thankfully isn’t a sight people see every day. Anything could go wrong here, from the excavator hitting a bump in the road and throwing the passenger to the excavator being involved in a crash with another vehicle. Not safe and not smart! (Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration) |
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| Ledcor Tragedy Underscores Importance of Fall Protection |
When a worker suffers a serious or fatal injury, the whole company hurts. So one can only imagine the pain the folks at Ledcor are suffering right now.
Ledcor’s nightmare began yesterday just before 8 AM at one of its Vancouver sites.
Read more on this story and on the issue of fall protection on OHSInsider.com.
(note: subscription is required; to get instant access, simply sign up for a No-Cost Trial of OHSInsider.com. Plus, you will be entered into a drawing for a FREE NHL jersey of your choice.)
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| Seat Adjustment Puts Airplane Passengers on Edges of Their Seats |
An Air India 737 co-pilot set the jet into a terrifying 7,000 foot (2,134-meter) plunge after accidentally knocking the plane’s control column while trying to adjust his seat.
According to news reports, the co-pilot panicked and was unable to take corrective action while the jet, carrying 113 passengers, dove toward the ground at a 26-degree angle.
The captain, who had been on a bathroom break, used an emergency code to get back into the locked cockpit and was able to regain control of the airplane. India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation said in a report that the 737 would have broken up before it hit the ground had it continued diving at such a steep angle.
The report stated that the 25-year-old co-pilot likely had not been trained on the scenario and did not know how to respond to it.
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2010 Due Diligence Scorecard: The 14 Critical Lessons from Recent Court Rulings that Every OHS Professional Must Know about NOW. |
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