How to improve the well-being in your warehouse? | RAJA

It’s a fact: logistics and warehouse work are some of the hardest jobs around. Did you know that it isestimated that an order picker travels an average of 10 to 15 km per day? And that handlers carry 1 to 10 tonnes per day (8 tonnes on average in the food industry)?So, with such complex working conditions, it is your responsibility to take an interest in well-being in your warehouse! Find out here about all of the equipment and good logistics practices that can help to make this work less arduous, and to ensure that your employees have optimal working conditions for their physical and mental health.

The challenges of well-being in your warehouse

First of all, you should know that well-being in the workplace is far from being an optional extra for your company. In fact, Article L4121-1 of the French Labour Code specifies that“The employer shall take the necessary steps to ensure that your employees have the best possible physical and mental health

• You reduce absenteeism due to sick leave or occupational illnesses, and therefore generate fewer costs for the company
• You give your operators the opportunity to increase their productivity in the warehouse, by motivating them
• You improve your employee experience, and therefore retain your operators in the long term, thus lowering your turnover rate
• You improve your employer brand, and therefore benefit from an increased attractiveness to potential new employees

this should motivate you to consider how you ensure health and safety at work, as well as the well-being of your operators! cta id=’debfe4b2-cf25-4088-8cf4-a11677baa0f2′]

The essentials for ensuring good working conditions in the warehouse

Carry out regulatory safety checks

First of all, ensuring well-being in the logistics warehouse means ensuring that the safety of operators is guaranteed at all times. To do this, it is crucial to carry out regular check-ups of the warehouse’s compliance. Therefore, make sure that you always carry out your Periodic General Checks (VGP) on the same date. This means checking the state of the work equipment at the following frequency

• Every 12 months for lifting equipment, such as stackers
• Every 6 months for motorised personnel lifting equipment, such as forklift trucks
• Every 3 months for man-powered lifting equipment, such as hand pallet trucks

also take care to regularly check the condition of the storage and order preparation equipment. Are the wheels of the handling equipment in good condition? Do the racks comply with the legislation? Is the quality of the packaging machines and pallets optimal? These frequent check-ups allow you to lay a good foundation for the working conditions of your operators, who will feel safe at their workstation. Put in

place a real policy of wellbeing at work

Beyond safety, how can you take a closer look at the wellbeing of your employees? Whether you have a small structure, or you manage several warehouses, the rule is the same: put in place a real policy of wellbeing in the workplace. This policy can take account of various aspects of the work done by your operators. In particular, think about ..

• Establish regular compulsory breaks. The Labour Code requires you to set up a break of at least 20 minutes every 6 hours of work, but this figure should be adapted according to your collective agreement and the needs of your employees.
• Create a rotation system: with this type of system, operators do not do the same tasks every day, which avoids repetitive movements (and therefore the risk of Musculoskeletal Disorders) but also weariness (which can lead to inattention and therefore accidents at work).
• Install an optimal break area: this is a key space to promote the well-being of your employees! So equip it with a coffee and tea machine, convivial spaces, and comfortable furniture for relaxation.

in short, think about all the processes and facilities that can help you, the warehouse manager, to ensure the serenity and motivation of your teams.

Support the professional development of your employees

Ensuring well-being in the warehouse also means mobilising managers to take into account the professional development of their employees, according to the expectations they have of their careers. So take the time to take stock of your employees, from the forklift operator to your order pickers, and identify their needs in terms of trainingand development

• Training: do they want to be trained for other tasks, to eventually move to another position?
• Coaching: do they need personalised support to be more productive, better organised, or simply more comfortable in their professional tasks?
• Skills assessment: an essential tool for career development

encourage exchanges and collaboration

One of the crucial keys to well-being in the warehouse is people, and a fortiori, mutual aid and exchanges between employees, but also with managers. So how can you improve the conditions of communication between those involved in the warehouse? For example, you can think about..

• Implement an “open door” policy to discuss the Quality of Life at Work (QWL) in the warehouse: set up regular focus groups to discuss elements that could be improved, encourage benevolent management, etc
• Offer more informal moments to employees: align with your HR department to offer employees afterworks, team lunches, or regular team building activities

les clés anti-TMS, cruciales pour améliorer le bien-être en entrepôt

Vous avez sans doute déjà entendu parler des risques musculo-squlettiques, aussi appelés TMS, qui font rage dans les métiers de la logistique. De la gestion des stocks à la préparation de commandes, en passant par le déchargement et la manutention, toutes les activité de l’entrepôt peuvent menacer la sécurité au travail de vos employés.

Assurer leur bien-être en entrepôt, c’est donc veiller à ce qu’ils puissent bénéficier d’un environnement de travail ergonomique, qui respecte leurs corps. Voici quelques conseils anti-TMS pour ce faire.

Optimiser l’ergonomie des postes de travail

Les postes de préparation de commande que vous avez installé dans votre entrepôt sont-ils assez ergonomiques pour éviter que vos opérateurs ne voient s’installer chez eux des Troubles Musculo-Squelettiques ?

Pour en être sûr, vérifiez que vous laissez, sur ces postes, à leur disposition…

• At the top, elements frequently used in order preparation (flat packs, small packaging parts, etc.), which can be accessed by simply holding out the bottom
• At operator height, the most frequently used elements, such as screens, the label printer, packaging tools (adhesive, cutter, etc.), and the dunnage roller
• At the bottom, less frequently used items that do not need to be grasped with full hands, such as dunnage machines or a secondary dunnage reel

this will ensure that all order pickers avoid unnecessary movements, and will greatly facilitate their daily work. To find out more on the subject, consult our article dedicated to the choice of your packing station or table.

Equipping the warehouse with anti-MSD equipment

Fighting against Musculoskeletal Disorders also means giving your operators the benefit of equipment that takes care of their health. In particular, make sure that you have..

• Anti-fatigue matsdo you have a high rate of error in your order picking line, or do you have a high rate of error in your warehouse?
• Handling equipment, such as constant height trolleys, rollers, or pallet trucks, to limit the physical effort required for handling
• Wrapping and banding machinesif your warehouse has a high palletising rate: this is one of the activities that cause the most MSDs

former vos opérateurs aux réflexes anti-TMS

Bien entendu, vos opérateurs doivent être formés aux équipements anti-TMS qu’ils manipulent dans leur quotidien professionnel.

Mais leur formation ne s’arrête pas là ! Faites également en sorte qu’ils sachent quelles attitudes et réflexes peuvent les aider à éviter les TMS. Rappelez-leur de régulièrement s’étirer et prendre des pauses, et apprenez-leur à repérer les premiers symptômes de Troubles Musculo-Squelettiques.

N’hésitez pas non plus à bien mettre en lumière le fait que les chefs d’équipe restent à leur disposition pour parler de tout souci ergonomique qu’ils pourraient rencontrer dans l’entrepôt.

Les techniques de bien-être auxquelles former vos opérateurs

Envie d’aller plus loin dans le bien-être en entrepôt ? Prenez le temps de consulter ces quelques techniques de bien-être, et à y former vos opérateurs, pour leur faire bénéficier des meilleures conditions de travail qui soient

.

Un process de réveil musc

• To wake up the neck: nod your head 10 times, then tilt your head 10 times to each side, then make 5 circles with your head on one side, then 5 on the other.
• To wake up the shoulders: with your hands on your shoulders, make circles with your elbows, 5 times forward and then 5 times backward.
• To wake up the wrists: with fingers interlaced, make circles with the wrists, 5 times on each side.
• To awaken the hips: with your hands on your hips, make circles with your hips, 5 times on one side and then 5 times on the other. Then, with your knee bent at 90 degrees, make circles with your knee to the sides, 5 times for each leg.
• To wake up all the legs: perform a series of 10 squats with your back flat.
• To wake up the ankles: toe down, circle the ankle, 5 times for each foot.

if you need to go further and train your employees in the techniques that can help them feel good at work, discover RAJA’s Muscle Awakening training and create a tailor-made programme with them that is adapted to their needs.

Some techniques for relaxing during breaks

Ensuring the well-being and health of your operators at work must also include protecting them against stress and tension, which can lead to burn-out. What if your operators took the reflex to do breathing exercises during their breaks? To relax, there is nothing like the square breathing exercisethe principle?

• First, take a breath on 4 beats
• Then hold your breath, full lungs, for 4 beats
• Then exhale on 4 beats
• Then hold the breath for 4 beats

the whole thing can be repeated 4 times: a real good practice to calm the mind and relax the body. And of course, don’t hesitate to remind your operators to stretch regularly, during their breaks, but also between two order preparations if necessary.

How to measure well-being in the warehouse?

Well-being in the warehouse may seem to be a complex element to measure. How can you know if people feel safe and fulfilled in their daily work life? First of all, certain indicators should alert you to the suffering at work of your employees

• Do you have a high turnover rate in your logistics teams?
• Is the absenteeism rate also high?
• Do you feel that your employees are disengaged from meetings, training sessions or team meetings?
• Do you notice a significant error rate on your order picking line?

this being the case, the best way to measure well-being in the warehouse, and to find ways of improving it, is to talk to the people who are the most concerned: your operators.Send regular satisfaction surveys to your employees. Give them the opportunity to answer them anonymously, to encourage honest feedback, and ask them very concretely what elements could help them to have a better experience of their work in the warehouse. Well done: you have in your hands everything you need to create a productive and serene working environment and atmosphere in your warehouse!