When working isn't working for your health

We would all like to have a job that allows us to be active and healthy; but the simple fact is that the majority of us are trapped at our desks for 8 hours a day, and we have to resort to the most curious methods to try to combat workplace hazards.

Deskbound workers suffer from a variety of health problems connected to poorly designed office space and ignorance of simple ergonomics. They range from very common ailments, such as myopia, from prolonged close-screen work, to painful conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome. Many office workers also spend hours seated in uncomfortable chairs, or cram themselves in the same space for too long. These poor work habits give rise to bad posture and back problems, due to compression of the spinal vertebrae in the same position for extended periods. Apart from physical problems, mental fatigue also sets in during a long haul in front of the computer.

Go for DESKERCISE (Via HindustanTimes)

Workers Memorial Day: Groups Air Concerns, Promote Safety Agendas

While Workers Memorial Day is an occasion for remembering those who have died in the workplace, for unions and other advocacy groups it's an opportunity to promote their agendas and voice their concerns on a day when the spotlight is on occupational health and safety.

The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, based in Brussels, Belgium, calls the day "an occasion for trade unions to examine the impacts of asbestos, ergonomics, HIV/AIDS, chemicals, psycho-social issues, violence at work and work in construction or by young workers as issues that reflect workplace management and uncaring employers." The organization also says it's an opportunity "to evaluate the responses of governments, small businesses and multi-national enterprises to these problems."

"It is clear that authorities and employers in several countries have adopted a passive, half-hearted attitude to the respect of workers' health," said Guy Ryder, general secretary for the organization. "Workers continue to die by the millions as governments remain lax in adopting legislation or ratifying [International Labour Organization] instruments that could solve the problem." (Via Occupational Hazards)

Ergonomics: Workplace Risk Assessment Strategies

Workplace injuries due to repetitive motion cost employers an estimated $2.8 billion in 2002, according to the latest data from the Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index.

If that figure isn't enough to convince you of the importance of developing an ergonomics component in your safety program, consider that repetitive motion was the fourth-leading cause of on-the-job injuries in 2002 and 2001, according to the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety.

In what will be the first in a continuing series on ergonomics, Occupationalhazards.com asked ergonomics expert Paul Adams, Ph.D., PE, CSP, CPE, a senior consultant with Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Applied Safety and Ergonomics Inc., to provide an introduction to the risks associated with repetitive motion and to offer an overview of some risk assessment strategies. Adams' background includes 6 years as the safety engineering and ergonomics leader for Toledo, Ohio-based fiberglass materials maker Owens-Corning.

For starters, Adams breaks all injuries into two categories: acute trauma and cumulative trauma. (Via Occupational Hazards)

Japanese operators say there is no scientific evidence that radio waves affect human cells

Japan's mobile phone operators, NTT DoCoMo, Inc., KDDI Corporation, Vodafone K.K. and TU-KA Cellular Tokyo Inc. have reported interim findings that radio frequency energy from mobile phone base stations does not affect human cells.

Using four human cell lines, two containing established infant and fetal fibroblast cells and two containing cerebral tumor tissues, and examining about 20,000 genes in the human genome (approximately 40,000 genes have been identified), researchers found no effect on cell proliferation, gene expression profile or DNA single-strand breaks. The results seem to indicate the safety of radio waves, as the radio waves used in the experiment were up to 10 times stronger than the limit set forth in radio frequency radiation protection guidelines for base stations.

The research uses an in vitro exposure system developed by NTT DoCoMo. The exposure system generates 2GHz-band Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA) modulated-signal RF fields that meet the IMT-2000 specifications for third generation (3G) mobile communications. (Via Geekzone)

Safety Bonds Good Communication, Employee Involvement and Management Support

The most important safety tool is the human mind. A successful welding safety program requires not only a complete understanding of welding equipment and processes, but a collaborative, human approach to safety in the workplace.

To a greater extent now, successful safety management calls for humanized techniques and tools to realize safety goals, even as automation becomes increasingly familiar to welding practices. This article covers a proactive approach to some major machine and worker safety concerns, as well as some common welding safety issues.

First and foremost, any successful welding safety program makes every effort to prevent injuries. Programs further rely on compliance with OSHA regulations, keeping worker's compensation costs low and, of course, knowledgeable, well-trained employees. More and more, achieving safety in the workplace also requires proactive management and employee support. Particularly for a large company, employee involvement in the creation and application of safety procedures is directly related to job satisfaction and a safe workplace. When given the opportunity to provide valuable input about their work, employees are generally more satisfied with their jobs, and in turn, help ensure safety compliance and lower worker's compensation costs. (Via Occupational Hazards)

Over the Long Haul, Fatigue Kills

When a Union Pacific freight train thundered into tiny Macdona, Texas, just before dawn June 28, the engineer and conductor had clocked more than 60 hours in the previous week, working the long, erratic shifts that are common in the railroad industry.

They flew through a stop signal at 45 mph and slammed into another freight train that was moving onto a side track. No one even touched the brakes.

Federal investigators suspect that both of the Union Pacific crewmen had fallen asleep. In the weeks before the crash, each man's work schedule had at least 15 starting times at all hours of the day.

The Macdona crash illustrates a grim fact of life for thousands of engineers, brake operators and conductors who guide giant freight trains across the country: Exhaustion can kill. (Via KTLA)