As a worker, it’s important that you know your rights. One of the most important amongst those rights is your right to a healthy, safe working environment. But the workplace can have a lot more impact on your health than you might think. Here are some of the ways you should watch out for how the workplace can be a real danger to you.
Posture and activity
Some of the most common concerns for jobs of all kinds are those that have to do with how the work itself impacts joints, muscles, and most of all the back. In most modern workplaces, this is down to work posture. Finding the time to get up and stretch your legs if you’re at a desk or taking a break from any repetitive task is important. However, you can make it a lot easier on yourself by talking to your employer about ergonomics. Different seats and desks they could supply you with could cause a lot less stress on your back and joints and help you work with a much better posture.
The work environment
The less physical aspects of the work environment can have a big impact as well. Besides having benefits for your mental health, good lighting is important to keeping eyes healthy and avoiding painful issues like eye strain. Your employer should also be aware of their need to monitor and ensure that air quality is at acceptable levels. Things like poorly maintained AC and ventilation can lead to or exacerbate existing cases of asthma and other respiratory diseases.
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Workplace accidents
Perhaps the most concerning of all the workplace health concerns are those workplace accidents that can happen just about anywhere. Improper training with tools or equipment, floors that aren’t maintained and lead to slips and falls, fire risks, and other workplace issues can lead to serious injuries. Those kinds of injuries can make you completely justified in seeking a claim with personal injury law firms. Neither you nor your employer wants to let it get to that point If you notice issues in the workplace that bring with them a high potential of causing an accident down the line, it’s worth bringing this up with your employer. Not only should they fix the issue immediately, but they should have a risk assessment policy in place to reduce the probability of those risks happening again in future.
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Stress
Many people suffer some degree of stress when working and some will even claim that it can be beneficial in helping them give work their all. Home stress remedies might make the pressures of the workplace easy to deal with. However, employers have as much responsibility in taking care of the mental and emotional health of the workplace as they do with the physical. If your workload, your current hours or any other pressures in the workplace contribute to unmanageable levels of stress, you may be entitled to ask for some more flexibility in how you work.
It’s up to your employer to make sure that your workplace and the practices in the workplace are up to healthy standards. They’re responsible, but that doesn’t mean you should keep quiet about them. Don’t be afraid to bring up your concerns.
