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Health and safety » Workplace hazards and health issues

Manual handling

Scroll to end of page for updates on Manual Handling Training Annual statistics published by the HSA show that manual handling continues to be one of the primary causes of injury in the workplace reported to the Authority, with about 1 in every three accidents falling into this category. Safety and health concerns Manual handling tasks carried out using incorrect technique and without due regard to individual capability significantly increases the risk of injury to the back. These injuries range in severity from soft tissue injuries to more serious and permanent injury to discs. However, in all cases they are likely to lead to lost time from work. A number of factors affect the likelihood of injury occurring during manual handling and employers are obliged to carry out a specific risk assessment for all manual handling tasks to identify high risk factors and reduce them to as low as possible in conjunction with any training provided. These factors can include the weight of the load, the distance and frequency of lifts, stretching or stooping, production demands, fitness, floor conditions and space constrains for example. Risk Assessment A manual handling risk assessment must be carried out by a competent person in consultation with employees and must identify the specific aspects or part of the operation that could increase the risk of an injury to employees. Measures must then be put in place to reduce that risk and may include:- avoiding the need for manual handling using mechanical aids reducing the number of lifts or weight of lifts training and supervision of employees Training Training is only one measure that can be taken to reduce risk of injury from manual handling activities. Any training provided to employees must be relevant to the types of tasks carried out in the workplace and ideally should be provided by an instructor familiar with the particular manual handling activities of the employment. The most cost effective means of providing such training is through having an 'in-house' manual handling instructor. *Update 5th May 2010 Manual Handling Training Standards On 30th March 2010 two new awards were published by FETAC for Manual Handling Instruction and People Handling Instruction. These awards are at Level 6 on the National Framework for Qualifications and are called 'Level 6 Special Purpose Certificate in Manual Handling Instruction' and 'Level 6 Special Purpose Certificate in People Handling Instruction'. The awards can be found on the FETAC website. Availability of these courses which lead to the relevant award are unlikely to be available before the 3rd quarter of 2010. Individuals trained in manual handling or people handling instruction on these new courses will receive a FETAC Award through a FETAC Registered Training Provider. The HSA envisage a phase-in of the new system with new instructors receiving this award when it becomes available later in 2010 and all training providers will have to be a FETAC Registered Training Provider to offer this course. Existing manual handling instructors who have received their manual handling instructor certificate (prior to circa. September 2010) will have a 2-3 year period within which to apply for recognition of their existing training via a FETAC approved training provider through a Recognition of Prior Learning (or RPL) process. The Health and Safety Authority will continue to recognise both the new FETAC instructors and existing instructors until a date in the future (to be announced but envisaged to apply in 2-3 years). This is to allow existing instructors sufficient time to go through an RPL process to receive a recognised Level 6 FETAC Award. From this date, all manual handling instructors will be required to have achieved a FETAC Level 6 Award in either manual handling or people handling instruction. IBEC are in the process of registering with FETAC and on receipt of this will offer the Level 6 Special Purpose Certificate in Manual Handling Instruction. We will also assist existing manual handling instructors to apply for RPL. An overview of a model process for RPL is attached below to assist existing manual handling instructors to prepare for their RPL application. With regard to manual handling training for employees who use the techniques in their work activities, there is no similar standard scheduled to be launched in the near future. Further details regarding the implementation of this new training system are available on the HSA website here. Members of IBEC with any specific queries regarding the new award or Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) for existing instructors can contact our OHS unit via ohs@ibec.ie . More detail on the specific legal requirements and duties relating to manual handling can be found under the section General Application Regulations.

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