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Posted By dan bumpsteed
Hi all,
Ive recently been having some issues with my employer regarding the operation of hand pump trucks. To cut a long story short one of my managers has recently threatened me with disaplinary action because i refused to push a pallet truck seeing as i believe pulling it to be the correct procedure on health and safety grounds.
Training ive been given by some other employers ASDA and SAFEWAY has supported my view along with all other health and safety websites that i can find commonly stating "pulling rather than pushing loads makes it easier to see where your going and to steer the load"
Now the manager in question has produced an email from the health and safety dept of dsgi head office and this suprisingly supports his standpoint.
Does anybody know what is the official hse standpoint and where i can find the hse headed infomation as i believe this may be the only thing he and possibly the company as a whole may accept.
THANKS IN ADVANCE (sorry bout the essay)
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Posted By Mark Want
Hi Dan,
I have always been led to believe that pulling is the least accepted form of moving a load as it puts the most strain on the body and if control is lost it may run into you, however there are certain times where pulling is un-avoidable e.g. unloading a trailer, taking a pallet from under racking etc. If this is what you are being asked to do then do it as safely as you can, ensure your route is clear etc. use your bodyweight and leg muscles to get the load going (rather than arm/back)and ASAIRP try to get behind it and push, If the load does obstruct your view then this may be where the employer is able to reduce the risk by bringing the pallet height down...also reduce the weight then.
Hope this helps,
Mark
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Posted By Konstanty Budkiewicz Dan, You asked for an HSE link. See the following: http://www.hse.gov.uk/msd/pushpull/rubber.htmThis is a case study of issues surrounding handling: you could broaden the search for something more appropriate to your needs, if required. A point of note is that the guidance load for hand-handling appears to be 20kg. I personally use a slightly lower figure for very frequent users. Be aware that to measure the load at the steering handle, I use a spring balance and simply hook it to the handle and pull it until the load moves, then record the reading for assessment purposes. I offer this, because I suspect it is the load drag weight affects the acceptability of pushing over pulling the load in your case. Kon
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Posted By John D Crosby Hi Dan It will depend on circumstances. When you were trained by supermarkets they were quite correct in that pulling is safer but this is because by pulling you can see where customers are when approaching junctions etc rather than hitting them with a pushed load. I am not aware of any guidance from HSE specifically about this but there is some about roll cages which mentions the visibility problem when making an assessment. The leaflet can be downloaded from the HSE website with this link http://safetycenter.navy...hoto/archive/default.htmYou might want to consider asking for the reasons that the manager and safety department have come up with such a rigid rule when pulling might be the better option in some circumstances and pushing may the best in others. Take care John C
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Posted By MickN
Dan, I'm afraid to say that I don't think you're going to get the answer you seek, at least not here or on the HSE website.
I've been trained as a MMH instructor (albeit many years ago) and both pushing and pulling are contained in the definition of "manual handling". Your desire to pull this load would seem to be every bit as safe as pushing it, but is this really a battle you can win?
The work required to move the load is the same regardless of whether you push or pull it. A thorough risk assessment based on the task as a whole (work area, ground conditions, load weight, pallet truck etc) is the only way to determine which is best, or indeed if there is any difference at all.
Your manager (if he is in any way competent) should avoid threats and instead discuss the issue, including the relative merits of "push" over "pull".
Mick
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Posted By David Horenr
Have you been provided with a copy of the manufacturers operating instructions; these should define the correct method.
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Posted By Brando
Pump trucks are difficult to push over long distances - I've never been able to keep them straight!
Standard is to pull the truck. You will of course need to push when getting into smaller spaces, say when lowering and positioning the pallet on the ground.
Never seen any "official" guidance.
Common injury - people pulling pallet trucks and then letting them roll on into their ankles rather than bringing them to a controlled stop.
Brando
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Posted By dan bumpsteed
Okay first i thank you for all your responses, i find it interesting that there does seem to be some division on this issue so perhaps there is no official guidance but instead the route should be risk assessed and use of common sense should prevail. Sadly the manager in question its fair to say is a my way or the highway type of bloke, and from my experience the same could be said for the highest ranks of the company in general so i fear he/they will forbid my use of common sense and make me tow the company line.
My main reasons while i feel pulling would be safer and common sense is the environment we are moving the loads through. In actuality it bares very similar resemblance to my Asda store where we have intersecting aisles/junctions and have similar travel distances ie 100ft plus.
My first point is that if well god forbid a child was to run out in front of my path then i may not see them as my load will pass through the junction before i would. Pulling i am able to check the route is clear before emerging each time.
Also how small would a pallet have to be to see say a toddler in front of a pushed load, impracticly small ill bet seeing as the furniture boxes we move are quite bulky.
My last reason i would add that pallet trucks tend to suffer from a jacknife type effect since the pivot point while pushing is close to you, a very small movement from you causes a very large movement in front making the task much more involved to keep it under control. Surely the highest level of control is gained by pulling where the load generally follows your path.
Well think ive decided what to do:
1 more research.
2 speak again to the store manager about the issue, showing the facts i have found and my reasons.
3 possibly refuse to move any loads till a proper risk assessment is carried out as i think is my right and also ask for some company re-training
Thanks any more help is welcomed...
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Posted By dan bumpsteed
Thanks for your comment David i will ask my employer if they have the operating instructions for the truck but ill bet they havent anymore. Out of interest i did look at some other pdf pump truck manuals on the web and it seems most sidestep the issue and dont recommend one way over another.
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Posted By William
I always thought it was simple science principles which led me to believe that the force of pulling is greater than the force of pushing and should this be correct then it is common sense that you should always pull the truck where possible as this makes it easier to move and also easier to steer. Obviously there are times when you must push it into position but if moving over a long distance then it would be better from both a health and safety point of view to pull as it would be easier to control and place less strain on the body.
I would also say that ergonomically there is more sense to pulling the pallet truck as the handle can be adjusted to a comfortable height when pulling, but would only be able to be used upright and at one position when pushed
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Posted By Cas Hi Take a look at link below, shows use of pallet truck, note pulling during movement and pushing to place: http://www.hse.gov.uk/pr...l/flash/transporting.htmAgree with Brando's post. In general it is thought to be better to push than pull but for me, pallet trucks are one exception to the rule. They are difficult to steer over distance and tend to wobble, as anyone with practical knowledge of this equipment will know, therefore should be pulled. Ask you boss to try pushing a few pallets around, hopefully they will see just how petty they are being. Also use link below to read up and get yourself some ammo before approaching your boss: http://www.hse.gov.uk/research/rrpdf/rr228.pdfFurthermore, you could phone your local HSE office and ask to speak anonymously to the duty inspector, who should give you further advice. Good luck, would be interested to hear of the outcome. Cas
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Posted By A. Fergusson
Hi Dan
For what it is worth I would advocate pushing if possible, my reasoning being that if the load you pull is "heavy" if you trip or slip while pulling there is a real risk that the load will run over your feet/legs, but if you are pushing the load would move away from you so not injuring your feet/legs.
That said if the load is too big to see over pulling could be the only answer
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Posted By Mitch
What about 1 pushing and 1 pulling?
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Posted By A. Fergusson
If I think through one pushing fairly safe, but the one pulling, now this person is even less safe, his colleague can push the load onto him if he were to slip/fall. Not a winner for me.
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Posted By Mitch
Always the problem with pulling as you mentioned earlier either it's pushed on to you or you pull it on to you!!! If in doubt mechanise it?
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