Employees should restrict the use of extended pinch grips. Bunching of several small boxes into one lift which has the hand under the load in a non-pinch formation will reduce the use of pinch grips and reduce the overall number of lifts performed by the employees. Many employees, particularly in the conveyor areas, perform lifts at frequencies which are hazardous. For lifting tasks performed for an eight hour shift the maximum number of lifts per minute which can be performed is 15. As the number of lifts per minute approaches 15 the amount of weight which can safely be lifted approaches 0.
Management needs to devise systems to move materials while reducing the overall number of lifts.
Additionally, employees need to be encouraged to pace themselves during lifting to maintain frequencies within a safe range for the load lifted. Employees should be provided with at least a 15 minute rest period after each two hour work cycle. This permits rest and recuperation of over exerted muscles. Employees should be rotated between positions which use different muscle groups and have varying rates of work. Areas such as the conveyor picking positions and palletizing stations which have high lifting frequencies should be rotated regularly to forklift or non-lifting positions.