From the front office, to the home office, to the corner office,
ergonomic mistakes and misconceptions abound in the workplace. Whether it’s office furniture purchased more with fashion and design in mind than function and daily use, or simply not understanding the standards to be truly “ergonomic”, we find ourselves forced into uncomfortable, unnatural positions every day as we go about our lives. Let’s look at five of the most common mistakes people make with their workplace and workstation ergonomics:
Fashion and/or Price over Fit
That impressive-looking antique desk and leather chair may make you look like the boss of bosses, but it can leave you feeling like the lowliest of menial laborers by the end of the day. And then there’s the opposite – the home-based business owners who buy cheap office furniture in an effort to save a few dollars, because “no one’s ever going to see it and we can always buy a new, better something or other later.” Here are some guidelines for desks and chairs:
- Ergonomic Chairs should be adjustable in the following ways – height of chair seat
from the floor; distance of the chair seat from the back; chair seat and chair back tilt (should be separate from one another). These adjustments ensure that your chair is tall or short enough for you to rest your feet firmly on the ground. The chair seat should be deep enough for you to rest your feet firmly on the ground and still feel comfortably seated – you don’t want the front of the chair seat to hit you in the back of the legs, nor do you want to feel as though you have too little seat under your seat. Chair seat and chair back tilt should both be adjustable, allowing you to sit comfortably either straight-backed or reclined to your preference. Many times, these two tilt functions are joined, not allowing you to adjust your back without adjusting your feet.
- Ergonomic Desks should be no lower or higher than one inch below your elbow when resting in your chair. Desks that are lower than that will cause you to hunch or scrunch over them. Desks that are higher will strain your shoulders and arms as you reach over the top of them to do your work.
- Monitors should be positioned slightly below the line of sight, but not so low that the neck is bent, as in using a laptop actually ON your lap. They should not be placed so high that the chin needs to be raised to use them, either. Monitors placed too low or too high can cause neck, shoulder and upper back strain.
Lighting that’s Not Too Bright
Many don’t think of lighting when they think of ergonomics, but how much light you have to work by can be a big factor in long-term eyestrain. Most office environments offer too much light, especially those that rely on overhead fluorescents. Most home offices tend to suffer from too little light. Younger employees need less light, in general, than older ones. A good rule of thumb when it comes to lighting your office is that you should be able to see all your work without feeling as though you need to squint against the brightness. In darker spaces, your computer monitor should NOT be brighter than other lighting. If it is, you don’t have enough light to safely work.
Ergonomics are Not a Checklist
It’s true that some aspects of ergonomically friendly workplaces can be checked off on a set of guidelines or a list. But ergonomics take many forms, and as each individual is different, so should each approach to ergonomics be different. Sure, you can set up each individual’s workstation using the guidelines we’ve given here, but there are other factors to consider – gender, age, type of task, and others. True ergonomics are what’s best for the individual involved, not just a set of rigid rules.
Ergonomics are Always Evolving
Many offices only worry about ergonomics when they buy new furniture, or move to new digs, or hire a new employee. This approach is a huge mistake, because it does not take into account the changes in employees or in the wear and tear on the furniture. We’ve already seen how age can affect eyesight, but it can also affect a person’s back, knees, arms and legs. Pregnancy can change a woman’s comfort levels and her ergonomic needs. An older chair will not always offer the same support it did when it was newer. The workplace that was “just right” for your last employee may not be at all suitable for his replacement. And those new tablets you just ordered for your staff have added an entirely new wrinkle to your ergonomics policy. Ergonomics are an on-going, ever changing entity – you have to treat it as such.
Ergonomics are Not “Something for Later”
Worrying about the ergonomic capabilities of your office is not something to put off until you can afford better. It’s not something you can avoid until an injury or illness occurs from its lack. (That’s like locking the garage after the car is stolen.) Ergonomics are something you should address now, and frequently in the future. It’s too important to the health of your staff, and your business, to ignore.
Ergonomic products can be costly, but ergonomic mistakes can be even costlier. Avoid paying those huge prices in the future – lost wages, lost income, lost employees – by paying a little more money, and attention, to ergonomics now.
