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Using Ergonomics to Ease Employees’ Return to the Office

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Strategies for returning employees to offices continue to evolve due to the emergence of new COVID-19 variants and changes in government regulations. While some workers may feel excitement and a renewed sense of focus, there is also notable hesitancy to be physically working side-by-side and accepting changes in the physical workspaces to which employees are returning. Many employees may be coming back to the office from less-than-ideal workstation setups at home, which could have been a source of pain and discomfort. On the other hand, new workstations or office layout changes can also create physical problems if these spaces are modified solely for COVID-related safety without considering healthy ergonomic conditions as well.

Employers may benefit from being proactive and planning for flexibility in the work space design to accommodate sudden changes. When designing and managing the new work environment and planning for flexibility to change layout and design as the pandemic continues to evolve, a concerted effort on ergonomics can help ease employees’ reintegration back into the office. This can help maintain a high level of work productivity and may even help with employee retention by creating positive workplace experiences and demonstrating care for workers.

Managing the new work environment

In recent months, the layout of many office spaces has likely changed to increase safety measures. Some companies are now moving to an open work model—commonly known as space sharing—where employees no longer have an assigned desk that can be customized to their needs. Other companies may be opting for layouts with greater separation between work desks, which can result in new ergonomic challenges such as reduction in the size of work area, increased reaching and awkward postures.

Feedback is important. Employers need to listen to how employees are feeling, what concerns they have, and what they physically need in the office to be set up for success. Ongoing, frequent communication is necessary to maintain trust and help employees feel at ease with changes in their work conditions. To proactively address any concerns, business leaders can utilize tools such as employee surveys and returning-to-office packages. Surveys are vital to gauge a sense of employee readiness and hesitations while also showing employees that their managers are listening to their concerns. Capturing employee feedback also helps employers prepare for potential setbacks.

Ergonomics training programs and self-help checklists can be successful tools to ease the return to office and help employees experience less physical discomfort as well as improve employee productivity, profitability and, ultimately, even job satisfaction. Ergonomics training should be customized to address the concerns employees may face upon return to the office environment. The training and checklists should provide guidance on solutions and adjustments that employees can implement in their workspaces to achieve maximum comfort and avoid the risk of injury.

Retaining employees

In November 2021, a record 4.5 million workers quit their jobs, and the Great Resignation has showed little signs of stopping in 2022, with January resignations falling just shy of that record at 4.3 million. It is clear that stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic has been one of the key factors contributing to the labor shortage. Business leaders have found that a portion of the workforce may not feel safe or find it necessary to return to the office. There are many facets of such sentiments that employers must consider, and while ergonomics are not necessarily the driving concern for workers, employers can help move the needle by improving conditions for employees in as many ways as possible. Ergonomics initiatives and investing in the office environment offer ways to help improve employee morale and reduce discomfort and physical stressors that lead to injuries.

Implementing wellness routines can also help keep employees physically and mentally healthy. Business leaders should encourage workers to maintain healthy lifestyles, take regular breaks, and take days off to spend time with friends and family. Lastly, early intervention is key when addressing problems in the workplace. Leaders must provide clear resources for employees who have concerns. If employees have no direction on what to do when they have concerns, they are more likely to become dissatisfied and leave the workplace.  

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced businesses to alter operations, and as the landscape continues to change, employee retention and workplace concerns could become even more at risk. When bringing employees back to the office, companies may experience more success if they implement and sustain their ergonomics programs, maintain ongoing communication, and create a workplace where employees’ well-being is clearly valued.

Applying the Pareto Principle for Personal and Professional Success

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Vilfredo Pareto, an Italian economist born in 1848, was apparently also a keen gardener, and like all keen gardeners, Vilfredo knew not all plants are created equal. Some of them produced a great crop of abundance, and some of them had very little to offer. In fact, legend has it that Vilfredo noticed that 20% of his pea plants were producing 80% of the healthy pea produce. 

This realization set Vilfredo on a voyage of discovery of other uneven distributions in life, particularly in relation to wealth. His discovery that 80% of the wealth in Italy was owned by 20% of the population was later found to be broadly true across many cities, countries and other geographic areas. This uneven 80/20 distribution formed the basis of what we today call the “Pareto Principle” or the “80/20 rule,” in recognition of the more general imbalance of inputs and outputs in many aspects of life. 

For example, it has been found that:

  • 20% of employees are responsible for 80% of results
  • 20% of customers account for 80% of profits
  • 20% of content in content marketing produces 80% of traffic
  • 80% of pollution originates from 20% of all factories

These rules are not set in stone and the ratio often will not be exactly 80/20, but this uneven distribution of the “vital few and trivial many” is found in many aspects of life and business.

So, why does this matter, and what are the practical implications for you as a risk manager and an individual managing your own personal life?

Risk Management Applications

Risk management often involves examining a seemingly never-ending list of things that can go wrong and may result in negative consequences. There are many different drivers that can increase either the likelihood or severity of a risk event and risk professionals are tasked with trying to prioritize the risks and focus on the key drivers.

The Pareto Principle can help to clarify prioritization in risk management. For example, the 80/20 rule has been evidenced within occupational health and safety, with 20% of hazards shown to account for 80% of injuries. Other cited examples include 80% of computer system crashes coming from 20% of reported bugs, and 20% of drivers causing 80% of accidents.

The 80/20 rule serves as an important reminder that not all risk drivers are equal and that a key aspect of risk management is the ability to truly understand the drivers behind risks so that we can focus our attention on those that matter most.

Personal Implications 

Perhaps one of the most profound personal takeaways from the Pareto Principle is the application to personal time management. We all know that some people manage to achieve extraordinary success in life, despite the fact that we are all constrained by the same 24 hours in each day. Arguably, many of the most successful business people are masters of prioritization and applying the 80/20 rule to their own personal time management. They recognize that not all tasks are created equal and, hence, they will carefully think about which tasks are their top 20% that will result in an 80% output. Then they get to work doing these tasks and delete, delegate or defer the other 80%. So the next time you have a list of 10 things on your to-do list, make sure to carefully choose the top two and get to work on them.

Work-From-Home Risks: The Toll of Bad Ergonomics

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The early days of COVID-19 saw employees camped at home, using kitchen tables, beds, sofas and whatever else they could use as makeshift workstations. The compounding stress of prolonged sub-optimal work conditions in a residential environment is taking a significant toll on the workforce’s physical health and mental wellbeing.

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Unless organizations intervene to address this situation, the problem is likely going to snowball into a very expensive oversight.
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Ergonomics aims to increase efficiency and productivity, and reduce discomfort. If left uncorrected, however, an un-ergonomic desk-chair-monitor-keyboard combination can lead to numerous manifestations of so-called “sitting disease,” such as repetitive strain injuries (RSIs), fatigue, vision complications, metabolic syndrome (weight gain and diabetes), circulatory issues in the legs, and musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) like chronic back, neck and shoulder pains.

The appalling work-from-home conditions for millions of employees in the United States may also soon be a nightmare for HR when it faces massive payouts for occupational injuries and MSD complications. The productivity losses that will ensue may also impact organizational performance as a whole.

Minimizing Workstation-Related Health Risks During Quarantine

Here is a snapshot of typical company costs for treatment of MSD-related complaints, in terms of direct and indirect workers’ compensation. In some regions, the average claim amounts for these kinds of injuries can be two to four times larger. Multiply these numbers by the number of potentially affected employees, and the math begins to look pretty grim:

• Wrist/Carpal tunnel injury: $7,600 average cost

• Tennis Elbow: $9,100 average cost

• Shoulder/Rotator Cuff injury: $14,800 average cost

• Neck injury: $21,000 average cost

To address these issues, employers can improve work conditions at home by offering ergonomic solutions. Ergonomic workstation equipment, such as sit-to-stand desks and proper standing mats, monitor arms, keyboard trays, active chairs and other flexible accessories help mitigate the most common health risks associated with desk jobs, such as back and neck pain, eye strain, wrist and carpal tunnel injury, and sitting disease. Here is a breakdown of the most common injuries and the office equipment that may address each:

Back and Neck Pain is caused by a lack of movement while holding the body in a fixed (often awkward) position, forcing discs to bulge and exert pressure on the spinal nerve. One solution is ergonomic sit-stand desks and desk converters, which allow employees to work while standing. This stretches out the spine, relieving pressures that accumulate in the back and neck areas.

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More time spent standing also reduces risks of heart disease and high blood sugar while boosting the body’s metabolic rate for weight loss, increased energy and improved mood.

Eye Strain is caused by having a computer monitor placed too close or too far away from the face, making the eyes work harder to focus or forcing the body to lean forward and strain the neck and eyes. One solution is an ergonomic monitor arm, which allows the user to move the screen forward or back and up and down to keep the center of the screen comfortably located between 15 and 20 degrees below horizontal eye level.

Wrist and Carpal Tunnel Injury is caused by long hours of keyboard use, resulting in painful fluid build-up, pressure on the median nerve, as well as awkward positioning of the hand and wrist while typing. A vertical mouse, which places the hand in an upright position, or an ergronomic keyboard tray can prevent this injury.

Sitting Disease and physical inactivity can lead to health consequences such as obesity, increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, accumulation of belly fat and abnormal cholesterol levels. Switching from sitting to standing to walking throughout the day is the most prudent regimen. Using a treadmill desk can help mitigate the debilitating consequences of sitting disease while potentially giving the body more oxygen, increased focus and enhanced mental acuity.

The human body was not designed to sit for many hours at a time doing repetitive work. Before the industrial revolution, people spent only three hours per day sitting. COVID-19 has effectively made an already known health risk many times worse by restricting employees indoors and forcing them to work off beds, sofas and kitchen tables.

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The onus is now on employers to get proactive about employee health and productivity while lowering healthcare costs.

Global Heat Waves Signal Climate Risks

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India is currently suffering under a heat wave that has lasted over a month, with temperatures reaching a record 118 degrees Fahrenheit (48 degrees Celsius) in New Delhi on June 10 and 122 degrees (50 degrees Celsius) in the western city of Churu. The death toll has been estimated to be at least 36, though some sources put the number at more than 150. Europe is also preparing for its own massive heat wave this week, with temperatures expected to be 36 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) higher than the seasonal average of 72 degrees (22 degrees Celsius).

This pattern of heat waves has become a yearly occurrence across the globe. Europe faced similar heat last year, as did Asia, with Japan experiencing record-breaking temperatures in 2018, which sent more than 71,000 to hospitals, killing 138. North America also saw extended higher temperatures in 2018, with 41 heat records across the United States, and heat-related deaths overwhelming Montreal’s city morgue.

Experts say that these global record-breaking incidents are the result of climate change, and likely forecast a new normal of dangerous summer heat.

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According to Stefan Rahmstorf, co-chair of Earth System Analysis at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Research (PIK), “Monthly heat records all over the globe occur five times as often today as they would in a stable climate. This increase in heat extremes is just as predicted by climate science as a consequence of global warming caused by the increasing greenhouse gases from burning coal, oil and gas.

” French national meteorological service Météo-France echoed these concerns, saying that heat waves’ frequency “is expected to double by 2050.” And according to a 2017 study from The Lancet Planetary Health journal, the number of deaths resulting from weather-related disasters could skyrocket in the future, killing as many as 152,000 people each year between 2071 and 2100, more than 50 times greater than the average annual deaths from 1980 to 2010.

As Risk Management has previously reported, these changes are also already impacting business operations globally, with direct economic losses from climate-related disasters (including heat waves) increased 151% from 1998 to 2017, according to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. Heat waves have serious effects on business operations, impacting things like road conditions and agriculture, as well as workers’ health and safety. More than 15 million U.S. workers have jobs requiring time outdoors, and according to the World Bank, even for indoor workers, productivity declines by 2% per degree Celsius above room temperature.

Many countries have taken steps to mitigate the effects of heat waves on their populations. For example, since 2016, India has been providing shelter for homeless people, opening water stations for hydration, cutting building heat absorption by painting roofs white and imposing working hour changes, curfews and restrictions on outdoor activities. These efforts have successfully reduced heat-related deaths from more than 2,400 in 2015 to 250 in 2017.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends similar steps to the ones India is taking, as well as ensuring that energy and water systems are properly functioning, establishing hotlines for reporting cases of high-risk individuals and encouraging energy conservation to reduce the chances of overwhelming electric systems. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recommends that employers and workers facing higher temperatures in the workplace pay close attention for the signs of heat stroke, and keep three words in mind: water, rest and shade.

While these on-the-ground measures can reduce the immediate effects on workers and vulnerable populations like the elderly, children and the homeless, PIK’s Rahmstorf warns that “Only rapidly reducing fossil fuel use and hence CO2 emissions can prevent a disastrous further increase of weather extremes linked to global heating.”