The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 regulate 'manual handling operations' which means transporting, supporting, lifting, putting down, pushing pulling carrying or moving a load by bodily force. The Regulations provide that employers must avoid the need for their employees to undertake any manual handling operations at work which involve a risk of injury, so far as is reasonably practicable. If this is not possible, each employer must, make a suitable and sufficient assessment of all such manual handling operations to be undertaken by them. The Health and Safety Executive suggest the use of the undernoted diagram as a risk assessment guide:
Each box in the above diagram (Figure 2) contains a guideline weight for lifting and lowering in that region. When comparing a work activity to the above diagram, you should firstly decide what box(es) the lifters hands pass through when moving the load. If the maximum weight the lifter is moving is less than the figure within the box, the operation is within the guidelines.
The risk of injury from a manual handling task will also be increased where a worker does not have the information or training necessary for its safe performance. Generally, employers must provide their employees with health and safety training. Furthermore, employees who are carrying out manual handling tasks may also require additional training.