The idea of Manual Handling Training always looks to ‘prevent’ workplace injuries that can result when completing tasks such as pushing, pulling, lifting or carrying a load.
Backsafe believes in prevention of workplace injuries rather than finding cures. Therefore, using the method ‘prevention is better than cure’, we will outline 6 better ways of Manual Handling that will improve your employee’s knowledge, training and experience of good, safe, physical work practices within the workplace.
This will help to reduce and hopefully prevent any further injuries as a result of poor Manual Handling training.
To learn from the following 6 benefits of manual handling training for your employees; sit-up straight, make sure your back is stretched and the lights in your room are lit well enough for reading.
Once you have completed those steps, please begin.
6 Advantages to Manual Handling Training for Employees
1) Raising Awareness
One of the biggest mistakes that an individual set with manual handling tasks make is having a little or poor awareness of the risks associated with the task at hand. Being unaware of the injuries that these lifts may incur, as a result of poor form and practice, is a threat that every employee should be aware of.
Manual Handling Training will raise awareness of the possible physical risks and mental dangers directly related to poor Hazardous Manual Handling.
Heightening the importance of good workplace manual handling practices within your employees and bettering their understanding of the potential outcomes if practices are ignored and Manual Handling techniques are not employed, can significantly reduce your workers compensation costs and improve overall safety of your employees.
Raising awareness is not a stand-alone practice, but it does ensure good Manual Handling practice is met and implemented but enforced, peer to peer, within their workplace, regularly!
2) Good Practice vs Bad Practices
An excellent outcome of Manual Handling Training is the understanding and learning of form and good practice.
Manual Handling instructors will provide employees with the knowledge of best, safe and most effective practice.
By understanding the best method to carry out Manual Handling, employees should understand the opposites; bad practice.
By teaching an understanding of the differences of good and bad Manual Handling, per the Hazardous Manual Handling Code, employees may be able to start implementing good practice techniques and avoid hazardous workplace practices within their own work area.
3) Employees in their Environment
One of the most valuable manual handling training practices is to host the course on-site, within the exact environment employees will be using their training on a daily/frequent basis.
This method helps to cement the knowledge accrued within the employees own working environment rather than needing to ‘mentally’ envisage using the taught manual handling techniques at their own workplace (which may not have an identical layout, many variables can enter the training process etc.)
For onsite manual handling training, Backsafe offers 100-120 minute training workshops for up to 20 people at a time.
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4) Teaching Employees How to Use Manual Handling & Mechanical Aids
Wherever possible one should use mechanical aids rather than only rely upon manual handling. Understanding the proper use of mechanical aids is crucial in manual handling, as these tools significantly reduce the risk of injury and enhance efficiency.
An extremely positive outcome of manual handling training courses on-site is to enable the instructor to show the intended and correct use of mechanical aids within the employees own working environment to ensure employee safety when using such machines.
Typically, employees using mechanical aids will have already been briefed and understood the additional safety requirements necessary to operate those particular machines.
However, by teaching employees on-site, best practice techniques can be ensured to be passed on and understood.
But by mastering the use of mechanical aids, employees can perform their tasks more efficiently and safely, ultimately contributing to a healthier and more productive workplace.
Proper training not only improves the effectiveness of these tools but also instills confidence in employees, empowering them to handle their responsibilities with greater competence and care.
Teaching employees within their own environment has an instrumental impact on the effectiveness of manual handling training for employees, this is heightened when mechanical aids are involved within the process.
5) Learning through Experience
For employees, learning through experience in their workplace is a critical aspect to bettering their understanding of the best work practices/techniques within their own work environment – which also ultimately improves confidence.
By engaging in hands-on practice within their actual work environment, employees can directly apply and reinforce the techniques they learn. This method helps correct any bad habits that may have developed over time, ensuring that employees adopt the safest and most efficient practices.
Due to the inclusiveness of learning from experience, many employees may be able to provide insight into their past methods and techniques which have now been corrected. This level of teaching may be highly beneficial to individuals.
In addition, employees that have picked up and developed bad habits which are translating into their daily work practices HABITS have a chance to ‘refresh’ their understanding in a learning environment with an expert which should help to improve their abilities to fulfil their role and improve the safety of their work.
6) Promotes a Healthy Workforce
One of the most under-estimated benefits from Manual Handling Training for Employees is the promotion of a safer, healthier and happier workforce as well as having a greater understanding of the roles and jobs they are there to fulfil.
Correctly applied manual handling techniques do not cause injury thus the building up of Musculo-skeletal Disorders (MSDs) does not occur.
Additionally, earlier aggravated joint injuries have time to heal when those joints are being used as they are intended not against nature as is the case when hazardous manual handling is employed.
It has been widely cited that a healthy workforce has benefits on productivity. Manual Handling Training promotes this by teaching good, efficient and safe practice within the workplace.
Manual Handling Training Advantages
In conclusion, manual handling training is essential for creating a safer, healthier, and more efficient workplace. By raising awareness, promoting good practices, providing on-site training, teaching the proper use of mechanical aids, and encouraging experiential learning, employees can significantly reduce the risk of injuries and improve their overall performance.
Investing in comprehensive manual handling training not only safeguards your workforce but also enhances productivity and fosters a creative culture of safety and well-being.
If you’re looking for onsite manual handling training for your employees, contact Backsafe today on 1300 022 257 or grab a free quote below.
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