Lifting is an essential part of daily work activities.
It should be done well to prevent health
hazards.
According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), over a million workers suffer from back
injuries annually, 80% of which are as a result of poor lifting. Furthermore, the Labor Force Survey
(HSE 2019/20) shows that work related MSDs (musculoskeletal disorders) led to 8.9 million lost
working days of over 480000 workers suffering from these disorders.
Therefore, safe lifting plays a crucial role in maintaining production uptime and lowering both injury
and post injury financial ramifications for both the employers and employees.
The good posture of the spine should always be
maintained during all stages of any lift.
If not properly maintained, serious health issues may
arise like muscle strains and sprains, lower back pains
herniation and even fracture in case poor habits persist
UNSAFE LIFTING PROPER LIFTING
SHORTCUTS MANOUVRE
Plan the lift
I. Bending about the waist
Position your self properly
II. Twisting or rotating the spine Bend about your knees NOT
THE BACK
III. Holding the load away from the body Lift smoothly using the legs
Move and set down the load
IV. The feet being too close to each other
carefully
Poor posture habits
Heavy manual loads
Lack of lifting equipment
Inadequate training
Unemployment
Production pressure
Employers' negligence of employees
underlying health conditions
Training workshops
Mechanical Aids like trolleys, cranes, wheel barrows
Monitoring by OSHE committee
Taking short breaks between hectic lifting intervals
Regular physical exercises
Sub contracting for loads heavier than you can handle
Rotation of lifting tasks