European Week for Safety and Health at Work 2007

Lighten the Load – 22nd – 26th October 2007

This year’s European Week campaign ‘Lighten the Load’ is dedicated to musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The aim of the campaign is to support employers, workers, safety representatives and other stakeholders in improving MSD prevention. These webpages contain helpful information on MSDs and European-wide initiatives.   European Week itself will run from 22nd – 26th October 2007.

MSDs are the most common form of ill-health disorders at work, both in the UK and across Europe. Work-related MSDs affect 1.0 million people in Great Britain alone each year. Problems include back pain, work-related neck and upper limb disorders (ULDs), including repetitive strain injuries, and lower limb disorders. Raising awareness, prevention and management are all key factors in reducing MSDs.

As part of European Week, HSE is working with the TUC to provide safety representatives with several regional training events on MSDs, together with web-based MSD checklists, during European Week (22nd-26th October 2007). Training will be given in assessing both manual handling risks – using the Manual Handling Assessment Charts (MAC) - and ULD – related risks. This training will also be an important event in HSE’s 2007/08 Better Backs campaign. “Better Backs” is an ongoing HSE campaign. The 2006 better backs campaign focused on:

• preventing manual handling and ULD-related injuries in the workplace through sensible precautions
• promoting the benefits of staying active with back pain (often the best therapy)
• prompting employers and employees to work together to get people with back pain back into normal activities

For European Week itself, you could organise your own activities and events to raise awareness of the issues. To find out more information on this, please click on the links on the left hand side. Alternatively please visit the website of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work where you can also find out more about the European Good Practice Awards 2007.

For further extensive information on MSDs, as well as tools, case studies, and advice to workers and employers, visit the dedicated MSD webpages on the HSE website.