Friday, 25th April 2008
Lighten up on heavy work, health watchdog advises
Lighten The Load is the theme of a campaign by the Occupational Health and Safety Authority as it joins a pan-European effort to highlight the risks of manual handling on construction sites and in shops.
"OHSA puts the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) high on its operational agenda. Various preventive steps could be taken to minimise the risks involved, such as avoiding manual handling as much as possible, reducing the distance covered, as well as literally 'lightening the load' one carries," Mark Gauci, the OHSA's chief executive officer said.
Other important factors of prevention include good posture and taking regular breaks from repetitive work. One must also be careful outside working hours since any strenuous activity could aggravate the problem, he said.
National occupational health and safety entities from the EU member states have been running this campaign for the last two years with the aim of promoting the reduction of manual handling at workplaces.
This year the campaign covers two high risk sectors - the retail trade and construction where the incidence of manual handling operations is very high.
OHSA said it estimated that in Europe, 24 per cent of workers claim to suffer from backache while 22 per cent suffer from muscle pains.
In most new member states the prevalence of these disorders is even greater - 39 per cent and 36 per cent respectively. It was estimated that half of early retirements in Europe are caused by pathological changes of the backbone, the OHSA said.
Moreover, it added, 15 per cent of all cases of inability to work are connected with back disorders.
These disorders are one of the main causes of absence at work throughout the EU. Not only are they a cause of suffering, inability to work and financial losses of the worker, but they also generate high costs for employers and the national economy.
Further information on the campaign as well as informative material may be obtained from the Occupational Health and Safety Authority.
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