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Health (or the equivalent, a certified ergonomic chair) as a necessary tool for remote working

Health (or the equivalent, a certified ergonomic chair) as a necessary tool for remote working

JANUARY 2021 | 2 minutes

How many people have suffered from back pain and have not had it seen to during the pandemic? These figures may never become reliable statistics, but its consequences, according to David Blay, journalist and renowned lecturer on remote working, will be seen in the medium to long term with sick leave caused by musculoskeletal disorders once things go back to normal.

In this context, these are his thoughts on the cost of remote working tools.

With regards the Law on Remote Working, the costs envisaged to be borne by employers include electricity, Internet and even computer equipment, but nothing in relation to suitable furniture, an aspect that will have a real impact on such risks.

In this vein, it would be worth looking into the cost (although it would be more appropriate to consider it as an investment) involved in what could be called a "Basic remote working package", bringing together physical and technical needs, now most people are aware of their basic needs in order to work remotely.

  • Wi-Fi. This involves an average outlay of €53 per month and a total of €636 per year.
  • Telephone charges. The average bill works out at €27.53 per month with an annual total of €330.38, although with the announcement of the arrival of 5G, this may likely lead to an increase due to the huge investments that have been made by the companies involved.
  • Computer (whether desktop or laptop). This also comes at a high cost. Given that, even with improvements to cloud services and increased digital training for citizens, a basic computer with an SSD hard drive and a minimum of 8GB of RAM ranges between €400 and €700.

Strangely enough, there is a wide range of office chairs designed by Actiu that cost less than all these other things put together, by some margin: purchasing and using one, and maintaining the correct posture, will enable you to work remotely for long periods of time. However, even with all of the above at your disposal, if you are not in good health, not even working from home will enable you to work efficiently.

Certified office chairs can provide different professional solutions at home, but not being in your usual workplace may prevent you from being able to work remotely in optimum conditions.

While some groups are fighting for better rights for people who are going to work remotely, whether on a full or part-time basis, maybe we should rethink what our first investment should be, among other things, because our health depends on it. And only by being in good health will it be possible to remain active in the market. At the very least, at peak performance.