Health & Safety Training: Setting Up Your Work Station

If you work in an office, most of your day will usually be spent in front of the computer. If you don’t know how the correct set up of a work station is, you will be sure to suffer from health problems such as carpel tunnel syndrome, back pain and headaches. Health and Safety Training can teach employees to set up a work station correctly so they can avoid health problems and reduce the number of sick leaves taken. By conducting regular health and safety training employees will feel healthy while working and be more productive at their respective work stations.  Below are some of the basic tips and hints for setting up a proper work station. Setting up your work station is just one of the many topics covered in health and safety training sessions for employees.

The first step that employees will learn in Health and Safety Training is to assess the chair they are sitting in. The chair should be comfortable enough for you to sit in all day. The chair should be adjustable and be able to support the lower back.  Adjust the height of the chair so that the top of your computer screen is at the same level as your eyes. Safety training guidelines suggest that employees keep their feet flat on the ground or on a foot rest while sitting at their work station. Hands should not be overly stretched in order to reach the keyboard. Your fingers should be able to use the keyboard with ease.  When typing, safety training experts recommend that you press the keys lightly. Pressing keys too hard will cause strain on your fingers and hands. When you are not using the keyboard your forearms should be supported by the desk or the arms of your chair.

If it is possible, position your workstation so that your computer screen is not directly facing a window. If your computer screen is directly facing a window there is likely to be a glare on your screen which reduces your visibility and puts a strain on your eyes.  Safety training guidelines will encourage employees to adjust the lighting of the room and the blinds of the windows to help reduce glare and reflection. It is a good idea that employees keep a screen cleaner solution and a soft cloth at their work stations to wipe away any dirt or fingerprints on the computer screen.

There should be nothing underneath your computer desk so that your legs are free to move about.  It is essential that you keep changing your position throughout the day in order to improve your circulation. You should take short breaks in between because it is not healthy to keep staring at the computer screen for too long. If your eyes feel strained or tired, focus your eyes on something at a distance, away from the computer screen for some time.  Now that you have gone over the basics of setting up a work station you can take the time to set your work station accordingly. Health and Safety Training sessions provide a lot of details and information about how to reduce commons risks in the workplace.