Computer screen safety worries near top of list of workers' fears

Union safety representatives have reported that ill health resulting from poor use of computer screens is workers' second biggest concern, behind stress from overwork. Worries about screens were reported by 41% of the union's safety representatives.

The union has said that employers should provide work station assessments for all employees, provide pay for time off for eye tests and allow workers to take regular and frequent breaks away from desks.

"Simple office hazards, such as spending too much time fixed on a computer screen or sitting on a badly designed chair, are often overlooked by employers. But today's survey shows that they are actually a huge concern to workers and need to be addressed," said TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber.

Concerns about screen displays are on the rise. It was just the fourth biggest concern in 2006, but is now the second.

The third most common concern is about the risks of repetitive strain injury (RSI) to workers using computers. The survey found that 40% of union safety representatives reported this as a concern.

The TUC said that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) had not done enough work to highlight and combat the issue of poor use of computer screens.

Concerns around [computer screens] stood out in this year's survey, and given the increasing use of technologies for work, this highlights an area for HSE to take up more vigorously," said its report.

Union safety representatives said that risk assessments overall were generally carried out, with just 7% saying that they were not carried out. The quality of assessments may be suffering, though, with 30% of representatives saying that assessments were inadequate. That figure was 27% last year.

"Employers do have to undertake assessments of work stations, and that is not just the screen, it's the desk, the chair, any other furniture," said Jonathan Cowlan, a health and safety consultant with Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind OUT-LAW.COM. "It should also be specific to what the person is actually doing, and sensible adjustments have to be made for the individual."

Employers take a risk if they do not provide properly assess work stations and provide adequate facilities for workers. Two years ago The Guardian settled a claim over repetitive strain injury brought by a freelance sub editor for £37,500.

"As well as civil actions, this is a statutory duty so employers could be prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive or their local authority, or they could be given enforcement orders giving them a time period in which to fix a problem," said Cowlan.