Forced standing for prolonged periods is the situation in which the worker remains standing in a specific place (with movements restricted to a radius of 20 cm), without being able to obtain temporary rest by walking or sitting down:
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For more than 1 hour continuously;
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For more than 4 hours throughout the day.
Health effects of prolonged standing
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Pain and injuries in the legs, knees, ankles and feet;
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Low back pain;
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Hypertension/restriction of blood flow;
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Heart disease;
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Varicose veins;
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Fatigue;
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Problems during pregnancy.
Predominantly standing work is associated with an even higher risk of heart disease than predominantly sitting work.
Standing for unnecessarily long periods should be avoided.
Preventive measures
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Ergonomic workplace and suitable working environment;
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Suitability of the workstation for safe and comfortable work: the height at which the work is carried out, chairs, workstations that allow sitting or standing, etc.);
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Design workstations according to the tasks to be carried out, for example, taking into account the height at which the work is carried out and avoiding workers having to stretch too far to reach something that is too far away or too high;
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Replace staying in a fixed location with a more active or dynamic posture;
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The ideal is to ensure a balance between postures in the following percentages: 30% standing; 60% sitting and 10% moving;
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Rotation of tasks;
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Give workers micro-breaks every 30 minutes to move around;
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If forced standing postures cannot be avoided, measures should be taken to mitigate their negative effects on health, such as ergonomic mats and insoles;
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Awareness-raising and training;
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Implementing organizational policies and practices aimed at ensuring that the measures are effectively implemented, for example by making it possible for workers to report problems related to standing.
“Stand when you need to, sit when you need to and move around whenever possible” – (Institute for Work and Health)
