Why Assess VDU's
Under the 2007 General Application Regulations Employers have a legal requirement to provide health and safety protection for employees who habitually use Visual Display Units/ Display Screen Equipment.
The employer is required to perform an analysis of individual workstations in order to evaluate the safety and health of employees, with particular reference to eyesight, physical difficulties and mental stress. A competent person with the necessary skills, training and experience must complete this analysis. Steps must be taken to remedy any risks to safety and health identified.
A documented analysis or risk assessment of a work station should include the following:
- Brief overview of the tasks completed at the workstation
- Evidence that all aspects detailed in Schedule 4 were taken into account as part of the analysis
- Details of issues that need to be followed up
- Details of an action plan to address outstanding issues which stipulates who is responsible, what actions will be taken and when they will be completed.
As well as ensuring your organisation is fully compliant with the current legislation, the benefits of conducting VDU assessments in the workplace can incorporate
- Reductions in staff absence
- Reductions in claim against the organization
- Reductions in adverse publicity
- Improve staff morale and increase productivity
- Improve insurance liability rating
- Reduce the risk of injury, litigation and downtime
