Sitting all day on the job isn’t good for any of us, we know. However, standing all day has its own set of drawbacks as well. There are ways to help that aching back and prevent worksite fatigue – but employers need to know the ropes and encourage healthy habits with their workers.
“75 percent of the world’s working population spends all day working on their feet. Construction workers, teachers, nurses, retail workers and wait staff are familiar with the feeling,” reports a blogpost on Big Rentz, an online construction equipment rental marketplace. “Standing, bending down, and lifting objects can cause leg cramps and feet and back pain, even after just short periods of standing.”
Related: Foot safety in the workplace: Safety from the ground up
Standing for long periods can not only cause sore feet and backaches, but swelling of the limbs, bunions, extra pressure on the joints and plain ol’ fatigue. These ailments can affect employee performance, mental capacity, eventually leading to heart disease or other declining health conditions over time.
How can an employer help prevent worksite fatigue?
Share the Big Rentz infographic below with employees to encourage better posture, include stretching exercises throughout the day, lift objects properly, choose proper footwear and take advantage of their breaks, to help prevent worksite fatigue.
A well-designed workplace helps prevent sore muscles and includes anti-fatigue mats on the floor, adjustable-height workstations and proper seating nearby.
Related: Preventing workplace slips, trips and falls
Encouraging short stretch breaks will loosen stiff muscles. These breaks can be just 1 or 2 minutes to limber up, but these should be performed several times a day.
When possible, encourage employees to shift positions from standing to sitting or walking, holding each position for only 30 minutes at a time. Ideally, the total standing time should not exceed more than half the workday.
View more details to help prevent worksite fatigue in the infographic below.
Infographic courtesy of BigRentz.