The work must be physically safe and healthy. This applies to lifting, pulling, pushing, postures and repetitive movements. The overall rule is in § 38 of the Working Environment Act ("lov om arbejdsmiljø"): the work must be planned, organised and carried out so that it is fully safe and healthy. Recognised norms or standards that matter for safety and health must be followed.
This course does not give limit values in kilograms. You will find them in the Working Environment Authority's (Arbejdstilsynet's) guidance on the ergonomic working environment and in the rules on manual handling. Here you get the method.
The prevention principles
The executive orders on systematic working environment work and on the psychosocial working environment are based on the general prevention principles from EU Directive 89/391/EEC. Three of them are particularly useful for ergonomics:
- Avoid risks, as far as possible.
- Combat risks at the source.
- Adapt the work to the individual, including the design of the workplace and the choice of equipment and working methods.
In practice this means that the solution is not first and foremost for the employee to "lift correctly". The solution is to arrange the work so that the heavy lift preferably does not arise.
Four helpful questions
- The task: How heavy, how often and for how long? Does it involve twisting, bending or reaching far?
- The load: Is it large, slippery, uneven or hard to grip?
- The surroundings: Is there space, a good floor, light and the right height at the workplace?
- The person: Has the employee been instructed and trained? Are special considerations needed, for example in pregnancy or reduced working capacity?
Changes that work
- Aids: lifting equipment, trolleys, ramps, height-adjustable tables. They must be suitable and adapted to the work.
- Layout: place what is used often at working height.
- Organisation: can the task be shared by two? Can people swap between tasks?
- Planning: breaks and variation in the work.
- Training: show how the aids are used (§ 17 of the Act: training and instruction).
Your role
As a working environment representative or supervisor you must:
- bring ergonomics into the APV
- check that working conditions are safe and healthy and that instruction is sufficient (§ 31)
- ask about near misses, for example colleagues with back pain even though nobody has reported an injury
- propose solutions that can be tried and followed up
Management's duty
The employer is responsible for providing aids and adjusting the work. As a colleague you can point to the problem, but you cannot solve it alone. If management says no to a proposal from the working environment committee, the committee can demand a justification within 3 weeks.
Example
In a kitchen, two employees lift heavy pots from the floor onto a stove every day. The first reaction is to talk about lifting technique. The better solution is to ask whether the pots can be filled on the stove, whether a trolley can be used, or whether the task can be shared. That removes the strain instead of asking people to be careful.
Remember
Pain in the back, neck and shoulders often comes on slowly. So keep asking, and take small signals seriously too. Watch whether a solution creates a new strain somewhere else.