Office safety - common faults
It is surprising how many employees in offices consider their
working environment is safe and occupational injuries are only
associated with heavy industry. Nothing could be further from the
truth. Repetitive strain injury (RSI) is caused by a strain on the
tendons in the forearm due to prolonged use of keyboards. Visual
display units can affect eyes. Sitting badly can affect peoples'
backs. Paper can cut skin. Other injuries happen as well.
When did you last make an objective assessment of your office
safety? Adapt work and/or workplaces to the individual. Carry out a
risk assessment. See also the Risk
Assessments information [PDF file].
Legislation
See the Health and Safety
Regulations pages.
Things to look out for
- trailing wires
- obstructed fire extinguishers
- overloaded sockets
- glare from visual display units
- top heavy shelving
- overcrowding
- inadequate ventilation
- swinging doors with no viewing panels
- inadequate facilities for the disabled
- trip hazards
- badly wired plugs
- inadequate lighting
- filing cabinets left open
- smoking near flammable materials
- no first aid box
- no safety documentation or information
- incorrect ambient temperature
- inadequate ventilation near the photocopying machine, etc
Further information
- Officewise
[PDF file] - A HSE publication on
office safety