Rank: Forum user 
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Morning All, we are a vertically aligned business so we carry out almost all roles in-house from design to manufacture to warehousing to retail, and all the associated back office roles you would expect. We have a good system of both e-learning and face-to-face manual handling training, which I am happy with - with all applicable new starters doing the e-training in the first fortnight and then the face-to-face within a couple of months. My question is that currently, only those in higher hazard areas do this training and I am thinking that all staff should do the online training, as everyone has to do some manual handling at some point even those who might not consider they do.
Would it be common practice for 'office workers' to do manual handling training?
Any thoughts or opinions gratefully recieved. thanks
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Rank: Super forum user 
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I would only do thr training in scopre with what they actually do and normally this is only about body position and ascertaining the weight and movement of objects. This could be completed on e-learning for this group or micro teach, same as tool box talk only you go through lifts, but it is still only 20mins or so.
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Rank: Forum user
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Thanks Invictus, so I take from that that you would advocate that ALL employees do some kind of training?
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Rank: Super forum user
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IMO yes as everybody does some manual handling and office workers,
in my experience often get sucked into doing more than might be expected. At my
last place we had a phenomenon called ‘office churn’ which mean that as soon as
you were settled in a particular location in the building some genius with an
organogram and very little common sense would start reorganising the desk space
(to ‘optimise it’) . So once again staff in tailored suits and high heels would
end up helping to shift stuff around and someone would injure something.
What you need to do is take a cold hard look at the training
on offer. The sort of detailed stuff that someone working in warehouse needs,
is not necessary for the person who shifts things occasionally in an office.
For office based staff it is mainly about knowing their limits and feeling empowered
to say no, we’ll leave that for the porters to shift.
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Originally Posted by: A Kurdziel  some genius with an organogram and very little common sense would start reorganising the desk space (to ‘optimise it’) .
Love it!
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Care to stop and think? - following this "blanket" logic you should also train them to correctly examine electrical equipment, evaluate the exposure to the toner of the multi-function fax/printer/scanner/cappuccino machine etc. so there are no omissions in their understanding of the law. Then after all this training on the day of their retirement did they complete any task they were actually hired for?
In all the manual handling courses I have been on NONE covered the incidents that pinged my back - lifting a 3 year old into a rear car seat of a hatch back and picking up a pen from the floor!
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Rank: Super forum user
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Care to stop and think? - following this "blanket" logic you should also train them to correctly examine electrical equipment, evaluate the exposure to the toner of the multi-function fax/printer/scanner/cappuccino machine etc. so there are no omissions in their understanding of the law. Then after all this training on the day of their retirement did they complete any task they were actually hired for?
In all the manual handling courses I have been on NONE covered the incidents that pinged my back - lifting a 3 year old into a rear car seat of a hatch back and picking up a pen from the floor!
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Rank: Forum user
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The MHO regs do not specify that training MUST be given. Unusual in this regard. Because generic training has been demonstrated to be pointless?
However, providing a safe system of work where there is a significant risk (using the 3-armed man filter in the guidance) leads us to the conclusion that infrequent but foreseeable situations such as office moves could be tackled best with specific information, TBT equivalents, and supervision.
For most office situations (not relocating) I just suggest simple sensible information (a poster, leaflet, visual standards in stationery store, changing drinking water bottles etc).
For known situations where MH is an everyday risk, any MH 'training' still needs to be specific to the problem. Moving furniture, emptying wheelie bins, lifting inspection covers - all different. Best done as part of an overall safe system of carrying out activities. Only then may it have some validity in influencing behaviour.
Also coach the supervisors in what poor practice looks like - to be able to correct on the spot.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Originally Posted by: Roundtuit Care to stop and think? - following this "blanket" logic you should also train them to correctly examine electrical equipment, evaluate the exposure to the toner of the multi-function fax/printer/scanner/cappuccino machine etc. so there are no omissions in their understanding of the law. Then after all this training on the day of their retirement did they complete any task they were actually hired for?
In all the manual handling courses I have been on NONE covered the incidents that pinged my back - lifting a 3 year old into a rear car seat of a hatch back and picking up a pen from the floor!
Well…lifting a three year old into the back of a car will not of itself do your back in but lifting a three year old (difficult load that is unstable, involves twisting and no opportunity to use your lower body strength position load) can be the final straw that breaks the camel’s back after a working life time of poor lifting. A good manual handling course should start with the basics, and picking up a pen off the floor is a good, place to start. You can explain how lifting a pen weighing a few ounces can create several pounds of pressure on your spine. Ask them how golfers take balls out of holes?
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