7 Highly-Effective Office Ergonomics Tips to Boost Productivity

The sedentary lifestyle of many of today’s workers are posing significant health concerns and causing employers to shift their focus to workplace and office ergonomics tips. Although office jobs are traditionally safer than working on a construction site, there are many workplace ergonomics issues that can be addressed to enhance safety and productivity.

Many companies are meeting these challenges head on with office ergonomics checklists based on office ergonomics best practices and by proactively implementing an office ergonomics safety program.

Why Are Workplace Ergonomics Important?

OSHA explains ergonomics as the science of fitting job demands and workplace conditions to the capabilities of your workforce. When you remove the incompatibilities between the worker and their work, you’ll empower your workers to achieve maximum productivity. For these reasons, it’s often said that workplace ergonomics is good for business but much better for people.

Office Ergonomics Tips and Office Ergonomics Best Practices

Fortunately, implementing workplace ergonomics best practices doesn’t have to be an overwhelming process. You can create helpful office ergonomics checklists based on the following seven highly-effective office ergonomic tips.

1. See the Light of Proper Illumination

Task lighting can allow your workers to easily adjust illumination, so they can properly focus on the task at hand. At best, an adjustable light will allow them to minimize glare, reduce headaches, and reduce eyestrain. By positioning the light to the side of the monitor — instead of in front or behind it — the glare on the computer screen can be minimized.

2. Utilize a Keyboard Tray

A keyboard tray is an inexpensive, but effective tool to ensure your worker’s arms are at the proper height. Awkward shoulder, arm, and wrist positions can lead to painful musculoskeletal disorders (MSD), such as carpal tunnel syndrome.

The elbows should dangle even with the keyboard height, while forearms should be parallel to the floor. The keyboard tray will help your workers achieve an ergonomically sound position without sacrificing legroom or space. One excellent workplace ergonomics tip is to purchase a mouse platform integrated into the keyboard tray solution.

3. Alternate Sitting and Standing   

Instead of sitting in the same position all day, it’s best to vary the working position between standing and sitting. There are several workplace solutions that support work while standing, such as standing desks, islands, standing height tables, etc. In the event a sit-and-stand work surface isn’t available, a simple solution is to stand during phone calls, during meetings, or when reading — and then sit for computer work.

4. Keeping the Eye Focused on Office Ergonomics Tips

It’s important for everyone to rest their eyes at regular intervals. One office ergonomics tip for the eyes is to practice the “20-20-20” rule, which explains when workers rest their eyes every 20 minutes for 20 seconds by looking at something 20 feet away.

It’s also a great practice for workers to make a conscious effort to blink more. Under normal conditions, people typically blink anywhere from 12 to 15 times every minute. However, most people only blink seven times a minute when staring at a computer screen.

5. Positioning the Monitor Properly

It’s best to position the monitor or screen at least 20 to 30 inches — which is an arm’s length — from the face. To reduce neck strain, the screen should be positioned at eye height directly in front of the person and slightly tilted up to make the screen surface perpendicular to the individual’s face. While several monitors do not offer these capabilities, a high-quality monitor arm will allow them to make these adjustments.

6. Forget About the Treadmill

Everyone has heard about the treadmill-at-the-desk trend. However, recent studies connect this unorthodox practice with decreases in productivity, loss of focus, and an increase in risk of falls. for those using a treadmill at their desk.

The better solution is to take a quick walk around the building or even inside of the building during breaks. You can even establish walking meetings to encourage everyone to get up and move. Another effective office ergonomics tips is to send print jobs to printers further away.

7. Contact Premier Safety Partners

Although often overlooked, workplace ergonomics is a big deal. Failure to utilize proper office ergonomics tips can lead musculoskeletal disorders (MSD), which are among the most frequent causes of lost or restricted work time.

In 2013, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that MSD cases accounted for a staggering 33% of all worker illness and injury cases. However, most —if not all— of these cases could’ve been avoided by implementing proper workplace ergonomics.

Whether you create an office ergonomics checklist to remind your workers of the office ergonomics best practices or create a comprehensive office ergonomics program, reminding your workers of their safety is good for business and even better for people.

Let’s talk. The experts at Premier Safety Partners offer decades of experience helping create safer, more productive office environments with highly-effective workplace office ergonomics tips.

Contact us today for a free workplace ergonomics consultation.