Health, Safety and Environment - International Labour Organization

Manual 4:HEALTH, SAFETY & ENVIRONMENT FACT SHEETS Trade union actionCollectivebargainingBasicergonomicprinciplesYour union can use collective bargaining to overcome some of thelimitations in your country’s health and safety legislation. Encourage yourunion to develop agreements that tackle ergonomic hazards.It is generally most effective to examine work conditions on a case-by-casebasis when applying ergonomic principles to solve or prevent problems.Sometimes even minor ergonomic changes in the design of equipment,workstations or job tasks can make significant improvements in workercomfort, health, safety and productivity. For example:Hand toolsHand tools should be of good quality and designed according to ergonomicrequirements. In order to prevent health problems, hand tools should bedesigned so that they fit both the individual and the task. The following listprovides some ergonomic guidelines:choose tools that allow the worker to use the larger muscles in theshoulders, arms and legs, rather than the smaller muscles in the wristsand fingersavoid holding a tool continuously in a raised position or gripping a heavytool. Properly designed tools allow the worker to keep the elbows next tothe body to prevent damage to the shoulder or arm. Additionally,properly designed tools do not require the worker to bend the wrists,stoop or twistmake sure that hand tools are designed for women as well as menchoose handles that are long enough to fit the whole hand. This willhelp to reduce uncomfortable pressure on the palm of the hand or onthe joints of the fingers and handdo not use tools with spaces where fingers and skin can get caughtchoose double-handled tools, such as scissors, pliers or clippers. Theseshould have a span that does not overstretch the handdo not select tools with contoured handles; they fit only one size of handand put pressure on hands they do not fitmake tool handles easy to grip. Handles should also have goodelectrical insulation and they should not have any sharp edges or sharpcorners. Put soft plastic covers on handgrips to make them less slipperyavoid using tools that force the wrist to bend or to be in an awkwardposition. Redesign tools so that the tool bends and not the wristchoose tools with an evenly balanced weight and make sure they areused in the proper positionmake sure tools are properly maintainedtools should be appropriate for right or left-handed workers156 Health, Safety and EnvironmentA Series of Trade Union EducationManuals for Agricultural Workers