Manual Handling

Manual handling is defined as “any transporting or supporting of a load by one or more employees and includes lifting, putting down, pushing, pulling, carrying or moving a load, which, by reason of its characteristics or of unfavourable ergonomic conditions, involves risk, particularly of back injury, to employees.” So whether it is lifting that box of paper to reload the printer, carrying a crate of bottles to restock the shelves or carrying any load across a factory floor; we all do manual handling in our jobs. So who is responsible for your safety when carrying out these tasks?

The employee: As individuals we all have a responsibility for our own health and well-being, at the end of the day if you get injured it is you that will feel the pain! So you need to know how much you are able to lift, if you don’t think you are capable of lifting something, don’t lift it. It is your employers responsibility to provide training; however if you do not tell them that you need training it may not be on the top of their priority list. Take the initiative and tell them you need and want Manual Handling training, don’t put your health at risk.

The employer: Every employer has a duty to take “reasonable care to ensure their employees safety from reasonable foreseeable risks in the workplace.” If your employees are required to carry out any type of manual handling tasks they need to know how to do it properly and it is your responsibility, as their employer, to make sure they have the correct training. For more information on this contact Rory O’Donnell Physical Therapy or see the Safety, Health & Welfare at Work Act 2005 & General Application 2007.