Education Sector Safety: Violence Prevention, and Ergonomics

Integrate violence risk, and ergonomic controls into a practical school OHS system.

Education settings include both “industrial” hazards (machine tools, chemicals) and psychosocial hazards (violence, harassment). WorkSafeBC provides resources on safeguarding for machinery hazards and emphasizes that guarding and safe procedures are essential to prevent injury from moving parts.

Violence prevention should be addressed through written programs and risk assessment, consistent with WorkSafeBC’s violence prevention guidance and tools such as the Take Care program guide. Ergonomics also matter: WorkSafeBC’s computer workstation guide provides practical recommendations to reduce injury risk from workstation design and posture—a relevant control for educators and administrative staff.

• Actionable takeaways

  Implement violence prevention procedures and training; address ergonomic risks (workstations and repetitive tasks) with practical fixes and verification.