Hazardous manual handling is the biggest cause of workplace injuries in Victoria, with WorkSafe accepting 48,355 injury claims since 2021. More than 60 per cent of these injuries were musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) such as sprains, strains, back injuries, soft tissue injuries, hernias and chronic pain.
To help reduce the harm, WorkSafe’s Manual Handling Basics workshops provide practical tools and resources to identify hazardous manual handling and apply appropriate risk controls.
“When people think of hazardous manual handling, they often picture heavy lifting, but it shows up in countless other ways across all types of workplaces,” WorkSafe Chief Health and Safety Officer Sam Jenkin said.
Almost 40 per cent of MSDs caused by manual handling in the past five years come from the manufacturing and the healthcare and social assistance industries.
This includes the childcare sector where tasks such as lifting children in and out of cots, playing with children at floor level, or spending long periods at a desk completing administrative tasks can pose risks.
Food manufacturing activities such as lifting and carrying, and repetitive tasks such as labelling products or sealing bottle tops, can lead to injuries if the risks aren’t adequately controlled.
“On average, about 26 workers are injured as a result of hazardous manual handling every single day across Victoria and no sector is immune,” Mr Jenkin said.
“These injuries can be debilitating, but the good news is they are largely preventable with the right systems, equipment and work setups in place – which is exactly what our workshops are designed to help employers achieve.”
The workshops are designed for Victorian:
- employers, managers and supervisors with OHS responsibilities
- small and medium-sized businesses (1-199 employees), including full-time, part-time and casual workers.
In the Manual Handling Basics workshops an independent expert in ergonomics and safety explains manual handling and provides practical tools and advice to help prevent injuries. The online workshop will help:
- improve your knowledge about hazardous manual handling and musculoskeletal disorders (e.g. sprains and strains, back injuries, soft-tissue injuries, hernias, chronic pain)
- understand your OHS responsibilities
- learn how to do a risk assessment
- implement a simple risk management approach to prevent manual handling injuries in your workplace
- spot the early warning signs of an injury from hazardous manual handling
- access free support tools and information
- keep your workplace safe
The independent expert can also provide advice and feedback about managing the risks of hazardous manual handling in your workplace during the workshop.
Learn more about the workshops and REGISTER HERE