Every year in NSW more than 1900 people in the retail industry and more than 900 people in the wholesale industry are seriously injured or suffer from illness related to manual handling. This represents about 44 per cent of all injuries in retail and 42 per cent in wholesale.
This costs these NSW industries about $58.5 million a year in direct costs.
Generally manual handling in the retail and wholesale industries affects the back, shoulder, knees, wrists, abdomen and pelvic region. The most common injuries include sprains and strains, damage to muscles and tendons and hernia problems.
Black spots
Manual handling injuries in the retail and wholesale industries are often caused when lifting or carrying heavy cartons.
Occupations that are black spots for manual handling injuries in the retail industry include:
- sales assistants
- automotive tradespeople
- production personnel
- transport workers.
Sectors within the retail industry that are prone to manual handling injuries include:
- supermarkets
- grocery stores
- department stores
- automotive repairs and services
- hardware stores
- homewares outlets.
Occupations that are black spots for manual handling injuries in the wholesale industry include:
- truck drivers
- transport workers
- production workers
- labourers
- process workers.
Sectors within the wholesale industry that are prone to manual handling injuries include wholesalers of:
- machinery and equipment
- food and drink
- tobacco
- building supplies.
WorkCover has a number of resources to help you address manual handling problems in the retail and wholesale industries.
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