might it be time to treat yourself to a new office chair?
TRANSCRIPT
Might it be time to treat yourself to a new office chair?
When I first started work in a large office, we all had very simple chairs that looked like they’d all be stolen from a 1960s canteen. They weren’t adjustable in any way shape or form and they were covered in a kind of nylon material that had no ability to breathe, so your bum got hot pretty quickly.
As I was in accounts working on some of the early versions of SuperCalc (remember that?), I spent most of my day sitting down in one of these chairs.
Luxury came once every six months when we had to take the covers off to be collected and washed. Nobody put their names on them, they were all different (horrible) colours and so no one cared if they got theirs back or not, they were all equally hideous.
Many people had terrible back problems and I remember my boss especially being off work for a long time and hearing stories of her having to sleep on the floor in order to relieve the pain.
This meant when she got back, she got a new swanky chair.
That’s how it was in the eighties. The only way you could get a chair that would help your back was if you actually harmed your back by sitting in one of the terrible ones they’d supplied.
I noticed all the managers had really nice chairs too, they didn’t have back problems.
Things are different now and employers have to look after their employees and that means they need to look after their backs by giving them chairs that won’t eventually cripple them.
Take a look at Health and Safety regulations for seating at work here:
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/hsg57.pdfHaven’t times moved on!
Now we have chairs that are adjustable in all kinds of weird and wonderful ways to suit all kinds of people with varying needs and requirements so there really isn’t any excuse for a good employer not to make sure their staff are comfortable.
Of course, uncomfortable staff equals poor productivity, as pointed out here:
http://www.ehow.com/info_8345253_effects-bad-work-chairs.htmlExamine your chairs, ensure they’re all adjustable and that they
are comfortable for all of your staff and you’ll have a happier, more productive office!
