Safety+Health shares – in pictures – how the National Safety Council conducts ergonomics assessments of workers’ desks and chairs to help prevent MSDs.

Whether sitting in an office all day or moving material in a warehouse, practicing good ergonomics can help workers stay healthy.

Do you sit at a desk for hours at a time for work? Do you ever feel sore, experience back or neck pain, or have pain in your fingers? If so, you may not be practicing proper ergonomics.

It’s important to exercise good ergonomics throughout the day. If you use hand tools as part of your job, keep the following in mind.

Musculoskeletal disorders such as carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, muscle strains and lower back injuries affect the muscles, nerves, blood vessels, ligaments and tendons, according to OSHA. But practicing good ergonomics can help prevent workers from acquiring MSDs.

Consider your work chair. Is it comfortable and supportive? Do you feel well-balanced sitting in it? Is it stable? If you answered “no” to any of these questions, you might need a new chair – one that is ergonomically correct.

Are you lifting objects correctly? If not, you could be at risk for an ergonomics-related injury, such as a sprain or strain, back injury, or repetitive-motion injury.

Working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic? The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries offers tips on how to best set up a safe and efficient workstation.

Does your job require you to stand for long periods? Or maybe you spend hours lifting and pushing heavy materials. Perhaps you’re in an office environment and sit at a desk for hours while typing on a computer most of the day. These situations are all considered risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders.

Lansing, MI — Michigan OSHA has launched a state emphasis program focused on protecting workers in office settings, where community spread of COVID-19 is a risk.

Dortmund, Germany — People who work from home are more likely to continue working when they’re ill, according to a recent study conducted by researchers from the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Raleigh, NC — Some people may believe that colleagues who step away from their desks are avoiding work, but the results of a recent study conducted by researchers from North Carolina State University show short breaks actually can help boost productivity and manage energy.

Menlo Park, CA — Thirty-four percent of office employees working remotely during of the COVID-19 pandemic say they might look for another job if directed to return to the office full-time, results of a recent survey show.

Boston — Do you eat lunch with co-workers? The food choices – healthy or unhealthy – of your lunch bunch are very likely to influence your own choices, results of a recent study led by researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital and the University of Massachusetts Amherst show.

San Francisco — Around half of workers say their employer isn’t doing enough to address the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the results of a recent survey conducted by Total Brain, a mental health and brain performance platform provider.

Lansing, MI — If you rely on caffeine to provide a brain boost after a poor night of sleep, findings of a recent study from researchers at Michigan State University may give you a jolt.

Philadelphia — A vast majority of employees who are returning to the workplace after working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic say they plan to continue practicing elevated hygiene amid concerns over the cleanliness of their offices and being around colleagues again, according to the results of a recent survey commissioned by hygiene and health company Essity.

Tampa, FL — Just one night of inadequate sleep can negatively affect your mental and physical well-being, a researcher from the University of South Florida says.

Menomonee Falls, WI — Around 70% of office workers say they’re washing their hands more often because of new strains of the virus that causes COVID-19, while about half avoid shaking hands with others, results of a recent survey show.

Atlanta — Almost three-quarters of U.S. employees are concerned about workplace safety standards and cleanliness as a protection against COVID-19, according to the results of a recent survey.

Barcelona, Spain — Exposure to printer toner, cleaning products and mold circulated in air conditioning systems – along with poor ventilation – can trigger asthma in office workers, results of a recent study out of England suggest.

Tucson, AZ — Reimagined office spaces can help reduce worker stress and enhance overall well-being, a pair of University of Arizona researchers say in a recently published paper.

Boston — Improved air quality in offices can boost worker focus, response times and overall cognitive ability, researchers from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health claim.

Adelaide, Australia — Open toilet lids, defective plumbing drains and uncovered trash cans may increase the risk of bacterial and viral disease transmission in public restrooms, according to a recent research review.

Copenhagen, Denmark — Performing “simple and brief strengthening exercises designed to strengthen the primary muscles used during work” – known as micro-exercise – while on the job may help prevent long-term sickness absences, according to a recent study out of Denmark.

Los Angeles — A recent survey of people who worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic shows that nearly three-quarters experienced new mental health issues, while 65% developed new physical issues.

Leicester, England — Researchers in England have developed a program they say can, when paired with a height-adjustable desk, reduce office workers’ sitting time by more than an hour a day.

Tucson, AZ — A noisy office can increase stress levels. But now researchers are saying that near or complete silence at work isn’t so great either.

London – A new, free document from the International Lead Association aims to educate workers and managers in developing countries on how to minimize or eliminate the risks of toxic lead emissions.

Lansing, MI — Michigan has become the first state to lower permissible blood lead levels – by as much as half – to protect workers, the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently announced.

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Maintaining a routine, helping others and taking time to focus on self-care are among the tips one Ball State University professor is sharing to help people stay “sane and safe” while practicing physical distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Feeling anxious about going back to the office during the COVID-19 pandemic? It’s important to manage your stress to ensure a healthy return – physically and mentally, experts at Ohio State University say.

Ticks can carry potentially life-threatening infectious diseases. Most active during warmer months (April-September), they reside mostly in grassy, brushy or wooded areas – putting virtually all outdoor workers in the United States at risk of exposure.

COVID-19 has changed the way we all work. Some of us never stopped physically going to work, while others have been working remotely since mid-March. No matter where we are, working during a pandemic has added stress to our daily lives.

You probably know about Lyme disease, and that it’s transmitted to humans through the bite of infected ticks. But have you heard of alpha-gal syndrome?

With the workforce becoming so much more versatile, are there different types of safety eyeglasses recommended for different kinds of work environments?

How does safety footwear protect from back pain and injury?

Aurora, CO — “Lack of recognition as frontline workers” adds emotional strain to the physical demands, staffing obstacles and COVID-19 concerns of workers who clean and sanitize health care facilities and equipment, results of a recent University of Colorado study suggest.

Atlanta — Health care workers who were diagnosed with COVID-19 during the first year of the pandemic were more likely to have contracted the illness on the job rather than in household or community settings, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study has concluded.

Washington — A companion bill to the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act (H.R. 1195), passed by the House in April 2021, has been introduced in the Senate.

Durham, NC — The rates of “moral injury” that health care workers experienced during the first year of COVID-19 pandemic was akin to those of U.S. military combat veterans, results of a recent study show.

Washington — Newly introduced legislation would direct OSHA to issue a standard requiring employers in the health care and social services sector to develop and implement a workplace violence prevention plan.

Queensland, Australia — Patient aggression toward receptionists in general medical practices has become a “serious workplace safety concern,” a recent research review concludes.

Morgantown, WV — A recent study of work-related sharps injuries shows that health care workers had a sixfold higher risk than all other workers – but other workers are at risk, too.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency wants feedback as it considers a training program for health care providers on recognizing, treating and reporting pesticide-related illnesses and injuries.

Toronto — Most workers who use cannabis to treat work-related injuries and illnesses do so without medical guidance or authorization, a recent study out of Canada suggests.

New York — Registered nurses, health technicians and health care support workers face an elevated risk of suicide compared with workers in non-health care fields, results of a recent study indicate.

Cambridge, MA — The median time from a worker’s injury to “first medical service” was either unchanged or shorter early in the COVID-19 pandemic relative to prior years, a new report shows.

Kuopio, Finland — Being excluded from social interactions on the job can have cascading negative effects on health and well-being, a recent study of Finnish health care workers shows.