The Warehouse Worker Injury Reduction Program

Worksite evaluations must be written and completed by a Competent Person. These evaluations must incorporate input from workers who do the jobs being evaluated. Worksite evaluations must be reviewed and updated by a competent person each year.

Worksite evaluations must:

• Identify and assess ergonomic risk factors that have caused or are likely to cause work-related musculoskeletal disorders. These factors can include, but are not limited to: rapid pace, forceful exertions, extreme or static postures, repetitive motions, direct pressure, contact stress, vibration, and cold temperature.
• Evaluate each job, process, shift, and operation done by workers involved in material handling tasks. When such jobs, processes, shifts, or operations are identical work activities, only a representative number of jobs, processes, shifts, or operations need to be evaluated.
• Determine if employees exposed to ergonomic risk factors are also responsible for meeting quotas as part of their regular tasks, and what consequences, if any, employees might face for failing to meet a quota (i.e. personnel action or termination).
• Provide a schedule of when ergonomic risk factors will be corrected, if their correction will take more than 30 days.

Employers must try to correct and eliminate the risk of musculoskeletal disorders identified through the worksite evaluation. If an employer shows they cannot eliminate a risk factor completely, they must actively minimize how much their employees are exposed to the risk.

An employer must consider the following methods to reduce or eliminate the risk of musculoskeletal disorders to their employees:

• Physical changes to the work stations. This could include engineering controls, such as changing shelving heights, providing adjustable fixtures and equipment, or providing redesigned tools.
• Changes to work practices or procedures. This could include adjusting administrative controls, such as rotating employees at specific jobs, reducing work pace, or providing additional breaks.

An employer must keep a written record of the steps they take to reduce or eliminate the risk of musculoskeletal disorders. Copies must be made available to workers and representatives upon request.

Employers must provide injury reduction program training to all employees who perform manual jobs or tasks handling materials, and those workers’ supervisors. This training must be provided once a year, during normal work hours and on paid time. The training must also be in a language and vocabulary that workers understand.

The injury reduction program training must cover:

• The early symptoms of work-related musculoskeletal disorders and the importance of early detection.
• Ergonomic risk factors for musculoskeletal disorder and employees’ exposure at work, including the danger posed by excessive work rates.
• Methods to reduce risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders including physical changes to workstations and changes to work practices and procedures, for example, slowing work pace or additional work breaks.
• The employer’s injury reduction program.
• The musculoskeletal treatment plans prepared by a medical professional.
• The rights and functions of workplace safety committees (as established by NYS Labor Law, Section 27-d).
• The rights of employees to report risk factors, other hazards, injuries, and health and safety concerns.
• Training on illegal employer retaliation, including the employer’s policy on possible disciplinary action for any manager or supervisor who retaliates or discriminates against an employee. The policy must also state the employer’s prohibition on workplace discrimination. 

If an employer has an on-site medical and first aid station that staffs a medical professional to treat warehouse workers for symptoms of work-related musculoskeletal disorders it must be staffed by medical professionals working within their legal scope of practice. Workers who report injuries to the on-site medical station must be provided with adequate medical care without delay.

Employees are not required to receive medical treatment from the on-site medical staff and may seek medical treatment from their personal physician.

Employers are responsible for ensuring the staff and practices of the on-site medical or first aid station follow New York State requirements for physician supervision, including supervision of nurses and emergency medical technicians. In addition, employers must ensure that all medical professionals working at the station observe the jobs involving the manual handling of materials in-person in the warehouse as well as the risk factors identified in the worksite evaluation.

The employer must consult annually with a medical professional on the systems, procedures, and treatments in use at the medical station. This consultant must be licensed by New York State and board certified in occupational medicine. The medical professional must prepare the following:

• A written evaluation of the medical and first aid station’s systems and procedures to identify and treat work-related musculoskeletal disorders. This evaluation must include recommendations to ensure staffing, supervision, and documentation of medical treatment protocols at the station comply with accepted medical practice.
• A summary of treatment protocols suitable for workers in the warehouse. This summary must include all aspects of the medical station’s practices, from early detection of work-related musculoskeletal disorders through evaluation by a qualified physician. It must also include appropriate work restrictions for employees. This summary must be provided to employees in a language they can understand.

When an employee workplace safety committee has a health and safety concern related to a worksite evaluation, they can ask the employer to have the worksite evaluation reviewed by a board-certified ergonomist. In warehouses where there is no workplace safety committee, any active employee-led committee can ask for this review. The employer must complete this review within 30 days of the request.

As is true following a worksite evaluation performed annually by a competent person, the employer must try to correct and eliminate any additional risks of musculoskeletal disorders identified through the board-certified ergonomist’s worksite evaluation. If an employer shows they cannot eliminate a risk factor completely, they must actively minimize how much their employees are exposed to the risk.