Almost everyone has heard advice from doctors and researchers that leading a sedentary lifestyle is not good for your health. Even though most people realize it’s true at least on an intellectual level, according to a recent story which appeared on the Personnel Today Website that is exactly what many workers are doing in during their workday.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock recently spoke at the International Society for Physical Activity and Health Congress in London citing a survey conducted by office equipment firm Fellowes which found that eight out of 10 workers sit at their desks each day at work between four and nine hours per day. Hancock urged those employers in attendance to encourage their workers to take breaks, offer standing work stations or work desks and standing meetings.
Approximately half of the 1,250 people participating in the Fellowes survey (45%) were of the opinion that their employer really didn’t care about their health and well-being. Some 85% of the survey participants said that if their employer invested in ergonomic equipment for workers, then that would show that worker health did matter to the organization.
Sedentary work habits can cause aches, pains and lowered productivity levels. Ergonomist Stephen Bowden from Fellowes added that employers are obligated to monitor the health and well-being of their staff. Bowden said that by not doing so, it could result in workers suffering from”…. injury, illness, as well as poor productivity output.”