The Importance of Workplace Ergonomics

An ergonomic workspace is one that reduces risk of injury. Office workers spend nearly a quarter of their lives seated behind a desk – around 2,000 hours a year. Sitting behind a desk may not sound like a dangerous working environment. But every year, thousands of workers suffer musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) due mostly to poorly designed workspaces. This post looks at the importance of workplace ergonomics and offers advice on designing the ideal desk environment.

What Is Workplace Ergonomics?

According to Merriam-Webster, ergonomics is the science of designing an environment in a way that people interact with it efficiently and safely. This is something we do naturally in our personal lives.

Think of your television. It’s placed in an area where everyone can see it comfortably, no matter where they sit. You likely also tried to reduce glare from both natural and artificial light sources.

Workplace ergonomics follows similar practices. Here, though, the focus is on proper placement of the tools your employees use. At a minimum, this includes monitor, keyboard, chair, and mouse.

The Benefits of Workplace Ergonomics

From an employer perspective, the main benefit of workplace ergonomics is your bottom line.

According to OSHA, musculoskeletal disorders account for around one-third of all workplace injuries and illnesses. They’re also one of the leading causes of “lost or restricted work time.”

Examples of MSDs include:

Carpal tunnel syndrome
Epicondylitis (commonly referred to as tennis or golfer's elbow)
Lower back injuries
Muscle and tendon injuries at the shoulder (commonly referred to as rotator cuff injuries)
Muscle strains
Tendinitis

MSDs decrease productivity while increasing sick leave and injury claims. Promoting workplace ergonomics helps reduce these types of injuries. You protect your bottom line while also protecting the health of your employees. That’s a definite win-win.

How to Implement Workplace Ergonomics

Like most workplace initiatives, an integrated approach works best. That means you involve both management and non-management employees in implementing an ergonomics program.

Start by getting management on board. They need to understand the “why” as well as their goals with implementation.

All employees need to understand the importance of ergonomics. That most likely means training on:

Many organizations have a health and safety crew, a group that conducts events like fire drills and disaster planning. They are a natural choice to help implement an ergonomics process.

How to Create an Ergonomic Workspace

An ergonomic workspace follows basic placement guidelines for each component the worker uses. This includes seat, desk, monitor, keyboard, and mouse.

Promote Healthy Posture

It’s important to know that, when it comes to ergonomics, posture is not about “back straight, chest out” or whatever you learned in school. It also isn’t about doing whatever feels comfortable. When we talk about posture in ergonomics, we mean the proper alignment of back, neck, and shoulders.

The following steps help promote healthy posture:

Keyboard position: Centered in front of the employee at elbow height, which allows them to type with their wrists straight and shoulders relaxed.
Monitor: Centered in front of the employee's keyboard and chair with the top of the monitor in the line of sight (slightly below that line for those who wear bifocals)
Telephone: If employees talk on the phone while working on the computer, they should use a headset instead of the handset.
Document stand: If employees type from a document, provide a stand that keeps the source material upright.

It’s also important to change position occasionally. At least once an hour, employees should get up, walk around, or stretch for at least a couple of minutes.

Ergonomic Seating

A high-quality chair dramatically reduces employees’ risk of developing lower back problems. Look for chairs with the following ergonomic features:

Adjustable, including arms, lumbar support, seat height, and seat depth
Backrest that's high enough for reclining postures and includes a slight incline
Sized to fit the occupant (not one-size-fits-all)
Rounded, soft edges and a comfortable fabric
Casters that move easily (but not too easily) on the floor's surface
Backrest angled at the seat in a way that doesn't force the employee to lean forward
Accommodate numerous seated postures

If you cannot replace all of your employee chairs at once, there are a few tools that help improve current seating. First, provide a footrest for all employees whose feet do not reach the floor. Next, offer small cushions or rolled towels to employees whose desk chairs don’t include lumbar support.

Avoiding Eyestrain

Eyestrain is a very common complaint among people who work in front of a monitor. You can reduce eyestrain by controlling the following:

Glare: Either shield or move light sources that shine on monitor screens. You can also move the monitor itself, which typically means changing its angle. (Remember, you want to keep it centered behind the keyboard.) If your office has windows, try to place monitors at right angles to them.
Monitor lighting: A light-colored screen background is easier on the eyes than a dark background. Monitors with poor resolution or flickering screens should be replaced.
Laptops: Employees who use a laptop as their primary work computer should have a docking station with an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse.

The Ergonomic Value of Movement

Two habits play a large role in MSDs, lower back pain, and circulation issues: Long periods of holding the same position and repetitive movements.

To combat these dangers, encourage employees to change position frequently. This may mean walking a couple of laps around the office every hour or so, or maybe walking up and down the stairs. It could just be standing in their cube to do a few stretches.

Another good idea is alternating tasks. Even desk workers occasionally have to do some filing, make copies, or send a fax. Encourage workers to get up and walk to each other’s office or cubicle instead of sending an email or calling. There are numerous ways to incorporate more physical activity into the workday without impeding productivity. Try asking your employees for more ideas.

Office Furniture that Supports Workplace Ergonomics

Southwest Office Furniture offers an incredibly diverse inventory of new and used office chairs, desks, cubicles, and more. Call 602.476.2455 to learn more.