'Common' Manual Handling Injury Costs $100,000

The employer was an Australia wide retailing chain with warehouses throughout Australia. Boxes were often stacked on pallets in-store. An employee at the Sale store was injured while completing a request to unload a pallet, price and place stock on the store’s shelves in January 2002. Other than being told to perform this task as quickly as she could, the injured employee was not provided with any instruction on how to perform the task. On 6 February the injured employee sought medical attention. Scans revealed she needed fusion surgery on her spine. The Victorian magistrate, L Hill, found that the employer failed to provide and maintain, so far as was practicable for employees, a safe working environment. The employer pleaded guilty and was convicted and fined $100,000.

Although the task seemed simple enough to do, the employer still had a responsibility to show the employee safe work practices in manual handling. Back injuries not only have statistically high claims costs, they can also result in an investigation and prosecution from State regulatory bodies.

The approach taken by all states and territories, that have manual handling legislation, is consistent with the National Standard and Code of Practice on Manual Handling.

The code of practice outlines 3 common ways to prevent back injuries

• Job redesign
• Provision of mechanical aids
• Training