Are you safe in your office?

I always thought the office was the safest place to be. No heavy machinery, no flashing lights and no hard hats gives you the sign that an office is a pretty safe to be. The pressure of deadlines however and increasing piles of work, working close to the same people all day, every day and the anxiety of dealing with people both personally and professionally could make you feel unsafe.

I was having a chat with Brendan from our new EzyLearn Business Partner – AlertForce Pty Ltd – and he pointed out some of the issues that arise in the workplace, he also proudly commented about the success they are having with their online safety courses. Brendan pointed out

“Every year thousands of office workers are involved in incidents and accidents that result in long-term injuries”

and when he explained some of the common causes they seemed pretty logical to me. The key with safety training though is even though it seems logical some of the basic safety principles must be explained and followed by everyone in the office. The one that stands out most to me is the proper method for lifting boxes (they call it manual handling), it’s simple, everyone knows it, but it takes a little extra effort. I think it’s worth it.

Another EzyLearn Business Partner, Registered Training Organisation Maxis Solutions at Chatswood offers a range of courses in many different occupations. Maxis Solutions owner, Pam Gum, pointed out to me that Occupational Health and Safety is included in Certificate II level courses in Business and Information Technology (IT) and it can include simple things like stretching and giving your eyes a break.

So, take a look around and see if you can spot the safety issues as they occur.