Manual Handling Regulations Explained

Manual Handling Regulations Explained

7 min Read

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Consequences of not complying with Manual Handling Regulations

The Consequences of not complying with relevant regulations and codes of practices can be split into four main areas: short term injuries, long term injuries, economic impact and mental health issues.

1. Short Term Injuries

   Examples of short terms injuries would be muscle strains, cuts, bruises, sprains or tears. These injuries are quite common in the workplace and usually caused by sudden and small, unexpected accidents such as losing grip and dropping a load, lifting a heavy load at an awkward angle or falling while carrying a load.

2. Long Term Injuries

   Long terms injuries tend to involve the musculoskeletal system of the body, including muscles, tendons, bones, joints, ligaments, nerves and blood vessels. These injuries are usually caused by long term, gradual wear and tear because of repetitive strenuous activities. These injuries are known as musculoskeletal disorders (MSD).

3. Economic Impact

   The economic impact of not complying with manual handling regulations can be measured in a number of ways such as lost time/days due to workplace accidents and injuries, personal injuries claims, fines and higher insurance premiums.

4. Mental Health Issues

   Mental health issues may consist of long-term stress, anxiety and depression. This is usually a negative side effect of dealing with long-term injuries that have disabling and difficult-to-manage symptoms. Physical ailments are more readily recognised than mental health issues related to poor manual handling, but we must not overlook the fact that long-term injuries can have a serious knock-on effect: they can lead to poor mental health due to the stress and anxiety triggered by long-term physical issues.

Importance of Manual Handling

Manual Handling happens everyday in at least 90% of workplaces. Manual handling isn’t just confined to construction sites and carrying bricks. It also occurs in places like kitchens, where staff need to carry heavy pans and large boxes of food. Even offices require some form of manual handling. Manual handling training is equally important in all environments where manual handling occurs.

There are two main reasons why it is important:

1. Reducing Injuries

   Manual handling training provides awareness, knowledge and reduces the risk of injury. This applies to everyone in the company from owner/s, manager/s, supervisor/s, staff, and site visitors. The most common injury from manual handling is musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The term MSD refers to any injury, damage, or disorder of the joints or tissues in the upper or lower limbs or the back.

   The HSA Stats Report 2019 states that there was 9,199 reportable accident and manual handling accounted for 31% of that number. It also states that manual handling is the most common trigger of non-fatal injuries in recent years. The back was the most injured body part for workers in 2019, in made up 22% of non-fatal injuries reported to the HSA. These non-fatal injuries were caused by manual handling related accidents.

2. Increasing Productivity

   The HSA report also states that 620,800 working days were lost due to work-related injuries and 822,300 working days were lost due to work related illness in 2018. Manual handling injuries accounts for 30% of this number (620,800).

   Such a large number of lost days significantly impacts productivity and output, as employees simply aren’t in work to complete their jobs. Manual handling training is important for reducing this figure and improving overall productivity.

What is the legal Requirement for Employers?

The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work, (General Applications) Regulations 2007, Chapter 4 of Part 2 states you are legally obliged to ensure the following::

1. Carry out manual handling risk assessment of existing manual handling activities before making any decision on what needs to be avoided or reduced.

2. Arrange activities in a way that mechanical or other means can be used to eliminate or reduce the need for workers to handle loads manually in the workplace. The hazards can be avoided or reduced by implementing appropriate organisational steps, such as improving the layout of a work area to minimise unnecessarily long carrying distances, or by employing appropriate means, such as mechanical equipment.

3. Provide appropriate training and instruction to all relevant employees.

A risk assessment involves examining what could cause harm to people and reveals areas for potential risk, which you should then work to rectify.

Who Needs Training?

According to the manual handling regulations, anyone who performs manual handling must undergo adequate training. Here are examples of some jobs that would involve manual handling activities and would require training:

• Warehouse workers.
• Manufacturing workers.
• Heavy manual labourers.
• Construction and building site workers.
• Office workers.
• Delivery drivers.
• Kitchen workers.
• Farmhands.

Does Manual Handling training have an expiry?

Here at S.M.T Consultants, we recommend that you refresh your manual handling training at intervals not more than every three years. This is in accordance with the Health and Safety Authority (HSA), who state that all health and safety training should be refreshed every two years at least to ensure safety standards.