Health and Safety Risk Assessment

4. Longer-term Health Risks

Apart from the possibility of accidents, there are risks to your employees' health that may only build up over a period of time. These must also form part of your health and safety assessment.

4.1 Many factors in the working environment are now recognised as putting employees under physical or mental stress.

• Poor lighting can lead to eye strain and headaches.
• Inadequate ventilation makes people tired and more likely to have accidents. It can also lead to the rapid spread of infectious diseases in the workplace.
• Uncomfortably high or low temperatures make it hard to concentrate and make employees more vulnerable to illness.
• Excessive noise can lead to headaches or even hearing loss.
• Poor air quality (eg from ink or paint fumes) can be an irritant or even a health hazard.

4.2 Poor design of chairs and equipment can cause musculoskeletal problems, such as lumbar pain and upper limb problems.

4.3 Bad practice and inadequate training in areas such as the manual handling of objects can lead to unnecessary injuries and back problems.

• Consider the layout of the work flow and whether storage is adequate.

4.4 There can be particular health problems for people working with computers. Ensure:

• PC screens are clear and flicker-free, and can be adjusted, and are free from glare.
• Desks and chairs are adjustable to the right height, and employees are shown how to make these adjustments (see 6.3).
• Footrests and other means of support are offered to those who need them.
• Working practices include regular breaks away from the screen and the keyboard.

4.5 Implement a smoking policy.

• Smoking is banned in almost all commercial premises and enclosed public places.