Page 56 - Occupational Health & Safety, September 2019

FALL PROTECTION
Why Safety Harness Comfort is Critical to Protecting Workers from Falls
Using human factors to overcome wearer reluctance.
BY ANN OSBOURN
When it comes to fall protection PPE (personal protective equipment) har- nesses, there’s no shortage of excuses from workers who do not want to don gear that’s hot and heavy.
Lighter weight harnesses are available, but they don’t always equate to “comfort”—especially for workers of varying shapes and sizes. So, even if work- ers are introduced to something “new and improved,” the improvements are so miniscule that the “it’s too hot, too heavy,” argument prevails.
Which begs the question: Can anything be done to make safety harness wearers more comfortable? Let’s answer that question by exploring:
■ Why comfort matters
■ How human factors figure into wearability
■ Why safety managers should prioritize com-
fort when selecting a safety harness
■ What to look for when making the switch to
next-generation fall protection
Comfort is Crucial
What does being comfortable at work have to do with performance? Everything.
We’ve all experienced less-than-optimal perfor- mance when trying to do a job wearing something unsuitable. For those working at height, however, ill- fitting and uncomfortable gear is like nothing else: It’s a potential distraction they simply cannot afford.
In the real world, the concept of “comfort” can be a bit elusive. What’s comfortable for one person may not be comfortable for another. In the world of worker safety, however, comfort must have a defined attribute; namely, unrestricted, freedom of movement, without pain or constraint.
Historically, safety harnesses have been everything but comfortable. This has gotten in the way of getting the job done safely. For example, the best-in-class gear of the mid-19th century was a simple body belt. The problem, however, was that the body belt could slip off, the worker could easily slide out or, worse, a fall
52 Occupational Health & Safety | SEPTEMBER 2019
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