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A healthy working environment
It's not just scaffolders and coal miners who risk injury at work - computer users face long-term injury if they have a poor office setup. Here's how to ensure you don't fall victim to RSI and other disorders.
You spend eight hours a day in your office. That's a third of each day, perhaps as much as half of the time you're awake and likely longer than you'd spend asleep in bed. Can you see why it's important you maintain a healthy, safe working environment?
You might not think a day spent before keyboard and screen is fraught with danger - particularly when compared with coal mining or delivering parcels on a bike - but repetitive actions such as typing, stretching and leaning, particularly when conducted from the relative comfort of a lazy slouch in a poorly built chair, can do long-term damage to your body, perhaps without you noticing.
Employers have a legal responsibility to provide their charges with a safe working environment, so should conduct regular workstation assessments. They should ensure their staff are following safe-use guidelines,
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01 Keep your blinds closed to avoid glare on your screen
02 Your monitor should be perpendicular to any windows
03 The top third of your screen needs to be at or just below your eye level
04 A document holder is best placed at eye level to the side of your monitor
05 Place your keyboard on a slight negative tilt (back portion lower) and about 1in above your thighs
06 Your mouse should be in plane with your keyboard
07 The angle of your knees should be greater than 90 with your feet in front of you
08 Your monitor should be arms length from your body (approximately 18-22in)
09 Feet placed flat on the floor or on a footrest
10 The space between your knee and your chair should be about 2-3in
11 Rest your arms comfortably at your side with your elbows at slightly more than a 90 angle
12 Support your back from all the way from your pelvis up to your shoulder blades
13 Sit back comfortably in your chair
14 Angle your hips at about 95-100
15 Thighs should be just about parallel to the floor
