Chevron
Chevron has more than halved lost working days and compensation claims from employees due to repetitive strain injury (RSI).
The incidence of RSI in the company had grown by 67% in five years despite efforts to reduce injuries among office workers. Over 40% of all injuries in the company were due to RSI.
The company used an online assessment tool to weigh up the risk of RSI among 30,000 employees. Special laptop accessories such as full size keyboards, use of so-called stretch software with built in breaks and online ergonomics training helped reduce the number of workplace injuries. The company also invested in ergonomically designed office equipment such as Gold Touch keyboards, which can be adjusted to reduce the strain on a user's wrists.
Chevron developed a so-called repetitive strain injury prevention (RSIP) plan that called for employees to provide data about their work habits and environments so that the company could calculate their risk of RSI.
Initially, 30% of employees were categorised as at high risk of RSI. Safety managers used RSIP data to channel help to employees most at risk. Injury prevention software sent automated messages about health and safety to those most likely to get RSI.
Chevron saved a lot of money in reduced compensation claims. "In one business unit, the average cost per claim went down from $83,000 to $36,000" [i]
Sources
- [i] Abilitynet.co.uk e-report 2005