Home Ergonomics – Planning a ‘New Normal’ in your Organisation? This will help

It’s broadly accepted that after the pandemic, we’re likely to see many people and organisations continue to embrace more flexible work. Especially continuing the opportunity to work from home for at least part of the time.

Correctly implemented, it should be a win-win – staff get their commuting time back and gain flexibility and autonomy to manage their work around other life commitments, and employers benefit from a happier and often more productive workforce, and likely save on office space to boot.

Of course, change is not without its challenges. In the clinics we’ve seen a spike of injuries associated with a poor home workstation set up over the last 12 months. That means headaches, and pain in the neck, upper/middle/lower back, shoulders, forearms, and wrists. In the office, these complaints should be relatively rare, as staff are typically surrounded by fit-for-purpose equipment, the space to get it all in the right spot, and a degree of direct oversight and support from the WHS team or other staff. At home it can be a different scenario – space is limited and the equipment is what you already have. ‘Making do’ was probably okay when we all thought working from home was going to be a short-term thing, but given it’s here to stay, it makes sense to apply the same principles and get it right.

That’s where Ethos Health’s online ErgoCheck can help. In 5 minutes, you can work through an interactive online self-assessment, fixing problems as you go. You’ll receive an instant report, with an employer dashboard to track completions and outstanding issues such as new equipment required. Online ErgoChecks allow organisations to meet their obligation to provide a safe working environment quickly and effectively at minimal cost.

Contact us or call (02) 4962 8700 for a free test of the platform for your WHS or management team, and join organisations from industry sectors including logistics, utilities, local government, mining, and professional services that use ErgoChecks to keep their team safe and comfortable, wherever they may be.