Work Related Upper Limb Disorders (WRULDs) in the printing industry are to be the focus of a new, two-year Health and Safety Executive (HSE) initiative starting in April 2004.
The initiative will target WRULDs amongst workers engaged in pre-print activities, operators of printing machines and those employed in finishing activities.
WRULDs, which include repetitive strain injuries, are problems affecting the shoulders, arms, elbows, wrists, hands and fingers and can also include neck pain. They are caused by forceful or repetitive movements, or by having to adopt a poor working posture. Symptoms include tenderness, aches and pains, tingling, stiffness and swelling. At worst, sufferers may have to give up work in the industry altogether.
Inspectors from HSE's Employment Medical Advisory Service will be visiting printers all over the country, looking at jobs presenting risks and assessing the control measures in place to reduce WRULDs. Where the risks of injury are not being adequately controlled they will be advising on what should be done to comply with the law.
The decision to target WRULDs in printing arose from the findings of an HSE study carried out amongst printers during 2002/3. It found that WRULDs were poorly understood; several of the printers interviewed were themselves suffering symptoms of a repetitive type injury. Employers were also unaware of the need to report these injuries under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 1995.
Dale Wallis of the British Printing Industries Federation and a member of the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) Printing Industry Advisory Committee (PIAC), said:
"Upper limb disorders can be successfully managed by employers who take time to see which jobs could cause harm, doing something to reduce the risk, and helping sufferers back into work."
Fellow PIAC member, Bud Hudspith, of the Graphics Print and
Media Union (GPMU) has also lent his support to the initiative
stating:
"WRULDs are a serious problem for many GPMU members,
especially in finishing areas. Print employers are more likely to
be successful in tackling WRULDs if they involve our safety reps
and members."
As well as improving standards and reducing risks, the initiative will gather examples of good practice that can be shared, helping the whole industry manage jobs that cause more WRULDs than any others.
1. Employers have a duty under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 to prevent WRULDs or to stop cases getting worse.
2. Advice on controlling WRULDs can be found in Upper limb disorders in the workplace HSG60 (Second edition) ISBN 0 7176 1978 8, priced £9.50, in a free leaflet Working with VDUs INDG36 (rev 2), both available from HSE books: http://books.hse.gov.uk The free leaflet is also available from HSE's website on www.hse.gov.uk/msd
3. It is estimated that 4.1 million working days (full-day equivalent) were lost in 2001/02 through musculoskeletal disorders mainly affecting the upper limbs or neck that were caused or made worse by work. On average, each person suffering took an estimated 17.8 days off in that 12-month period.
4. The initiative is being undertaken as part of HSE's "Revitalising Health and Safety" strategy. This initiative aims to reduce accidents and ill health by 2010.All enquiries from journalists should be directed to the HSE Press Office
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