Every year in the NSW government and education sectors more than 1600 people are seriously injured or suffer from illness related to manual handling. This represents about 31 per cent of all injuries from this industry.
This costs the NSW government and education sectors about $29 million a year in direct costs.
Generally manual handling in these sectors affects the back, shoulder, knees, abdomen and pelvic region. The most common injuries include sprains and strains, damage to muscles and tendons and hernia problems.
Black spots
Areas within the government and education sectors that are prone to manual handling injuries include:
- local government administration
- primary education
- secondary education
- state government administration
- emergency services.
WorkCover has a number of resources to help you address manual handling problems in industries within the government and education sectors.
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