Senior Client Partner, Global 人力资源 Center of Excellence
At first, working from home didn’t seem like too much of a challenge. 3月, the sales manager set up a card table and a folding chair in her laundry room, then kept the door mostly closed to keep the noise from her kids and pets to a minimum. 事实上，她很喜欢通勤时间短得多的地方. But around Memorial Day, she noticed her back was aching by the end of the workday. 她开始每隔一小时休息一下，让自己放松一下. 到了7月，她打字时手腕开始疼痛. And as Labor Day rolled around, she started feeling a pinch in her neck.
虽然自大流行开始以来没有相关统计数据, injuries spurred from working at home has become a growing concern among human resources executives. While these executives may have spent countless hours and considerable money on buying chairs that create good posture and lighting that doesn’t cause undue eye strain, setting up ergonomically correct home offices wasn’t high on the priority list of most employers. “A lot of organizations have folks working from home who are not used to people working from home,” 罗恩·波特, a 最新太阳城官网 senior client partner and member of the firm’s 人力资源 专家中心.
这种担忧可能不会消失. By one estimate, the number of Americans working from home ballooned to more 80 million (it was 3.7 million in 2017) when states first ordered people to stay home. While that number has declined since the lockdowns were reduced and some firms began bringing workers back to the office, everyone expects millions to continue working remotely even after the pandemic ends. 事实上, the risks of working from home was the main topic at the National Ergonomics Conference, 实际上是在8月底举行的. “当我们看到实际数据时, one-third of the total workforce transitioned to the home office, 我们几乎没有时间准备,琳达·米勒说, 人体工程学咨询公司EWI Works的总裁兼总裁, 致与会者.
即使雇主已经准备好了, some office furniture manufacturers were not set up to get their ergonomic-friendly wares to the homes of individual employees. The backlogs for some high-end office chairs can last weeks or months. 同时, the average remote worker usually wants a product that can be sent in a single box and can be easily assembled—ideally without needing special tools. But many office-furniture makers are used to shipping out a truckload of chairs and desks to offices, 在哪里可以由训练有素的技术人员组装.
至少在美国是这样, most workers’ comp insurance plans will cover carpal tunnel syndrome and other repetitive-stress injuries as long as they occurred during the course and scope of employment, regardless of whether that employment was in the workplace or the home office. 美国以外地区, government mandates play a role; in the United Kingdom, 例如, the government has said that there should be no increased risk from using display screen equipment (such as computers) for those working from home temporarily.
毫无疑问, experts say companies in any part of the globe should educate employees about the most common issues around ergonomics. “Oftentimes, you don’t realize you’re putting yourself into repetitive-motion risks,” Porter. “It’s only after the fact that you realize that you have an injury.” He says firms could schedule remote reviews of homes or point to a host of online guides. 对他来说, 布莱恩•布鲁姆, 最新太阳城官网全球福利副总裁, says good ergonomics prevent not only injuries but also the lost work time that such disorder creates. “You can minimize your risk by making small posture adjustments and stretching throughout the day,他说. “这比你想象的要容易.”
Experts suggest that employers ask workers what their most pressing problems are, and in the difficult cases help research what goods might solve the problem. Some workers might need only a laptop stand (price: often less than $50) to be able to work comfortably; others may need adjustable-height desks. 正如波特所说，无论哪种方式，更多的关注都会有所帮助.
