For a workplace to be productive, certain conditions have to be met. The most fundamental conditions required for maximum output and productivity include health and safety of both employer and employee.
In 2012, there were just fewer than 2.5 million non-fatal accidents that resulted in at least four calendar days of absence from work and 3, 515 fatal accidents in the EU countries alone. According to the source, these figures marked a substantial reduction in relation to 2009, when there had been approximately 313 thousand more non-fatal accidents and 310 more fatal accidents.
For this reason, most organizations make huge investments to improve employee wellness, occupational health & safety, medicare, ethics compliance and risk management. With all these properly taken care of, employees will be fully fit to focus on their jobs and turn in with great job delivery.
The following are common productivity hacks that could help employees deliver their KPIs and achieve their workplace goals.
1. Pay attention to Ergonomics
It is instructive to note that certain postures must be avoided to keep the body in top shape at work. Most times employees suffer pains or even fatal injuries in certain parts of their body due to poor office ergonomics. For example, the carpal tunnel syndrome is a painful condition of the hands and wrists caused by pressure on the median nerve, which runs from the shoulder down the arm to the hands.
Again, pain in the lower back, or lumbar region, has been identified as the most common work-related back problem. In combatting this problem, certain exercises have been designed to ease out the pain. In addition, the Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator (TENS) is common in the use of electric current for pain therapy. Tens unit pads are worn on the spine region of the back and have been proven to help people with lower back problems.
2. Observe safety precautions
According to a safety expert, common workplace health and safety hazards include: communicable disease, transportation accidents, workplace violence, slipping and falling, toxic events, particularly chemical and gas exposure, getting struck by objects, electrocution or explosion, repetitive motion and ergonomic injuries, and hearing loss.
Therefore, observing safety rules should not be restricted to employees of manufacturing industries, warehouses and stores alone. So apart from reducing exposure to toxic chemicals such as carbon monoxide, you should also be paying attention to important things like getting adequate sleep.
3. Use first aid
As much as you want to sensitize every employee on the need to prevent workplace accidents, training them on the use of first aid is equally as important. Come to think of it: around 200, 000 injuries occur in the UK every year, and up to 150, 000 people die every year who could have survived with first aid treatment.
Ideally, no amount should be too much to provide basic first aid facilities and to employ a certified first aider whose duty is to make emergency calls and ensure that the first aid kit is fully stocked. Remember that if safety brings first aid to the uninjured, first aid brings solace to the injured.
Other useful points to note include restriction of alcohol consumption, doing light work outs, minimizing the risk of falls, and maintaining a violence free workplace. These will facilitate healthy workplace hence improve general productivity.
