---

MANUAL HANDLING

Manual handling is a major part of a worker's job in the Retail Industry. Associated activities in this industry include stacking shelves, stacking cartons on pallets, moving trolleys, and packing stock.

Manual handling is not just about lifting heavy objects, but includes any activity requiring the use of force exerted by a person to lift, lower, push, pull, hold or restrain a person, animal or thing.

Manual handling injuries include:

• strains and sprains;
• neck and back injury;
• slips, falls and crush incidents;
• cuts, bruises and broken bones;
• hernia; and
• occupational overuse syndrome (OOS), once known as RSI.

People who suffer from a manual handling injury at work can spend the rest of their lives coping with pain and be unable to do a lot of things other people can do.

A large proportion of all injuries in the retail industry are strain related. The majority of these injuries resulted from manual handling activites.

Strain injuries occur through sudden overexertion or continuous overuse. Back injuries are one of the most serious types of strain. Excessive strain on your back can lead to long-term damage.

How Do You Know if a Manual Handling Activity is a Problem?

 

Persistent muscular aches or pains may indicate that there is excessive physical stress.

 

There are a range of risk factors associated with manual handling activites. These risk factors increase the likelihood of the activity resulting in injury.

 

Some of the main risk factors in the Retail Industry are associated with -

Frequent or prolonged handling involving:

• bending where the hands pass below mid-thigh level;
• reaching above the shoulder; or
• twisting the back.

Occasional handling of objects which are difficult or awkward to move due to:

• shape, size or instability;
• heavy weight; or
• being placed or stored below mid-thigh level or above the shoulder.

Extensive employment of young workers who are:

• more likely to be injured through manual handling work than older workers. (Their body is still developing and is less able to cope with strain.)

What Do You Do if You Spot a Manual Handling Problem?

Talk to your supervisor or your Health and Safety Representative.

They can work together to make sure the task is properly assessed.

Controlling Manual Handling Problems in the Retail Industry

1. Eliminate double handling.
Example: reduce the number of times an object is handled. Where possible move the stock directly from delivery to display.

2. Change the size or weight of packaging.
Example: flour available in 25kg bags for a bakery could also be available in smaller bags weighing 12.5kgs. Smaller bags can be lifted and handled more easily.

3. Reduce push/pull forces.
Example: employers could limit the number of shopping trolleys to be collected at one time by employees.

4. Work at the correct height.
Example: Use stable, sturdy, step stools to enable easy access to stock that is out of reach.

5. Training and Education
Workers should be informed and trained in:

• safe manual handling methods;
• specific manual handling hazards;
• safe work procedures;
• using manual handling aids; and
• the right to ask for help.

Manual handling injuries can be significantly reduced by instruction, training and supervision. Safe work procedures should be prepared by employers with the help of employees.

Employees have a responsibility to speak up if they feel a job is too heavy, too difficult, too tiring or puts them at risk of injury.

It is the employer's responsibility to provide safe work procedures, and adequate instruction, training and supervision for manual handling tasks.

Ways to reduce the risk:

lighten loads (break loads into small quantities);

reduce bending, twisting, reaching movements; and

prevent muscle strain and fatigue. This includes warming up before working, allocating time for rest breaks, and allowing time to gradually get used to a new job.

Stacking Shelves

When stacking shelves, manual handling means lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling, carrying, moving or holding any item that has to be moved onto or be removed from shelves.

Strain injuries may occur when:

• items are double-handled;
• items are stored above shoulder level;
• items are lifted from below mid-thigh height;
• items are too heavy;
• the weight of items is unknown and they are heavier than expected for their size or shape;
• excessive forward reaching is required when lifting or placing loads on and off shelves;
• there is not enough space to handle items safely; or
• the load is unstable or awkward to move.

Shelf stacking may also be associated with moving trolleys or unstacking pallets.

Moving trolleys

Strain injuries may occur when:

• elastic "ocky" straps are used to join trolleys. ("Ocky" straps are also a common cause of serious eye injuries and must not be used);
• trolleys are difficult to manoeuvre;
• trolley wheels are poorly maintained;
• the trolleys and their loads are too heavy;
• the surfaces over which the trolleys are pushed are uneven or mismatched;
• trolleys are moved over large distances or up steep slopes;
• trolleys are difficult to grip due to the absence of, or poor location of handles; and
• the person pushing the trolley is unable to see over the load.

 

It is safer to push than to pull a trolley.

Stacking cartons on pallets

Strain injuries occur when:

• the load is lifted from the floor, or from below mid-thigh height;
• reaching above shoulder height when stacking cartons on pallets;
• there is too much twisting and bending when placing cartons;
• excessive forward reaching is required when placing cartons on the far side of a pallet;
• the cartons are too heavy; and
• the cartons are awkward to grasp due to their size and shape.

Do not undertake manual handling tasks that are too heavy. Talk to your supervisor and Health and Safety Representative.

Talk to your supervisor about the size, shape and weight of cartons and their contents. It may be necessary for your supervisor to negotiate the size, shape and weight etc. with the customers or suppliers to reduce the risk of injury.