Manual Handling

Sunday, August 17, 2008

What is manual handling?

The regulations define manual handling as any “any transporting or supporting of a load (including the lifting, putting down, pushing, pulling, carrying or moving thereof) by hand or by bodily force”. In effect, any activity that requires an individual to lift, move or support a load will be classified as a manual handling task.

Why is manual handling important?

More than a third of all reportable injuries of over three days involve manual handling and around 10% of major injuries are linked to manual handling. It has a major impact on all workplaces and costs the economy hundreds of millions of pounds every year.

In the UK 1.1 million people reported that they suffered from musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) caused or made worse by work. It is estimated 12.3 million working days are lost annually due to work-related MSDs.

Who is affected/most at risk from manual handling?

Anyone involved in the moving and handling of goods and people could be at risk. Injuries and suffering can be linked to any work involving handling of loads, even light loads of handled incorrectly. Risks can be found in all work sectors but healthcare, agriculture and construction are recognised as high risk industries due to the number and nature of the manual handling activities.

What does the law say?

The Manual Handling Operations Regulations state that employers should adopt a hierarchy of control measures:

• To avoid hazardous Manual Handling Operations so far as is reasonably practicable
• To assess any hazardous Manual Handling Operation that cannot be avoided
• To reduce the risk of injury so far as is reasonably practicable.

The assessment should look at the task, the load, the working environment, individual capabilities when carrying out the assessment.

Good practice

The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 (as amended) set no specific requirements such as weight limits. The ergonomic approach shows clearly that such requirements are based on too simple a view of the problem and may lead to incorrect conclusions. Instead, an ergonomic assessment based on a range of relevant factors is used to determine the risk of injury and point the way to remedial action:

The Task:-

does it involve twisting, stooping, bending, excessive travel, pushing, pulling or precise positioning of the load, sudden movement, inadequate rest or recovery periods, team handling or seated work?

The Individual:-

Does the individual require unusual strength or height, are they pregnant, disabled or suffer from a health problem, or require specialist knowledge or training?

The Load:-

Is the load heavy, unwieldy, difficult to grasp, sharp, hot, cold, difficult to grip, are the contents likely to move or shift?

Environment:-

Space constraints, uneven, slippery or unstable floors, and variations in floor levels extremely hot cold or humid, poor lighting, poor ventilation, gusty winds, clothing or PPE that restricts movement?

No manual handling activity is completely safe but using the HSE manual handling assessment charts (see below) as part of a well thought out risk assessment, will reduce the risks from manual handling activities.