The BBC has employed a ‘chair champion’ to help staff moving to Salford Quays choose their seats – and learn to sit on them.
Staff moving north to the BBC’s flagship development at MediaCityUK are being given a choice of three different high-tech chairs. The ‘chair champion’ helps them make their selection – then shows them how to use their choice correctly as part of the corporation's health and safety training.
BBC bosses said it was standard practice for inductions to new buildings. But Karen Garrido, leader of the Conservative group on Salford council, branded it a waste of money.
A BBC spokeswoman confirmed the ‘chair champion’ was on site.
But she stressed that looking after the corporation’s seating needs was only part of his wider health-and-safety role.
She said: "Every BBC staff member is given training on how to use their chairs as part of their health and safety training exercise. It is standard practice for inductions to new buildings."
Football Focus presenter Dan Walker tweeted about his chair induction, saying: "Just had a chat with a chair champion. I have to select my favourite model... all of them swivel."
Coun Garrido said: "What a waste of money. I can’t believe we need to teach people how to sit on their chairs. They aren’t children."
Five BBC departments, including BBC Breakfast and BBC Sport, are moving to Salford as part of a £877m project.
Flagship shows including Match of the Day, Newsround and Blue Peter will move to MediaCityUK.
Some departments have already moved in.
There will be 2,300 BBC posts based in MediaCityUK with around 1,500 moving from London or Manchester city centre.
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its our blinkin money your wastin
Heaven help them when it comes to using the coffee machine, all that hot water!!! Do they have to ensure their pencils are not too sharp? jeeez
I want a refund of my licence fee please.
Well done to the BBC, more people are off work on long term sick or work with chronic pain because they don't sit correctly in a chair. They know how to sit but not sit in such away that they relief pressure on their knees, support lower back, shoulders etc. Its worth paying someone for 15 minutes guidance on how to set up their workplace correctly. Or you can pay someone who can't work because they are off sick.
Its a requirement of H & S, most major employers have someone who does a dynamic risk assesment on suitable seating, given that the majority will be sitting most of the day, and that bad backs account for a lot of sick days.
They will also assess how to use the PC, its really nothing new.
Quite right too.And I hope the danger of using pointy instruments such as pens is mentioned as well.God knows how much it would cost the BBC tax payers in compensation if one of the ex footballers were to jab himself in the eye.Thank heavens for elf and safety.
Nice......a combination of health and safety rules, plus the use of an (undoubtedly) expensive consultant to instruct grown adults how to sit on a chair. Unbelievable.
When did we all stop thinking for ourselves and taking responsibility for what we do in our own lives?
This would be a great article if it contained slightly more facts and slightly less conjecture.
People who gnerally enjoy frothing at the mouth will probably...froth at the mouth upon reading this. When did the MEN become the Daily Mail?
Too right.
They'd only have sued later because the BBC 'failed to inform them of how to protect their health' or some other such guff.
It's actually standard practice in large companies for someone to be trained in workspace assessment - all it means is that they'll check your chair is OK for your back, show you how to adjust it if you're uncomfortable, and make sure everything's set up at the right height etc. The reason companies do this is because it saves them considerable money - it prevents repetitive strain injury, back pain, neck pain and headaches and results in fewer sick days (and lawsuits) from staff. I've had one of these assessments at every job I've ever had. It takes ten minutes.
Cllr Garrido is probably unaware that Salford Council probably has a similar policy (and if it doesn't, it should).
They don't employee someone specifically to do this, and I doubt the BBC does either - it's probably just someone from HR or occupational health who is trained to do this on top of their normal duties.
In other words, the headline should actually be "BBC does something perfectly normal and councillor wets her pants over it for no good reason."
At those saying its a waste of money.... its not, its standard H&S
If they dont do it and someone hurts their back, because H&S was not conducted correctly, they sue the BBC. BBC lose, all people who work in a office/seated enviorment should have this training, its standard.
What sort of chair does the Chairman use ?
Remember, the BBC is a public sector body and staff at such places are notorious for taking much more 'sick' leave than the rest of the workforce - for some unknown medical reason sedentary public sector staff are much more prone to all sorts of ailments than equivalent staff in the private sector.
Hopefully this 'chair champion' is a sign that the BBC is taking steps to tackle this problem, but probably not. It's more likely just a typical waste of taxpayers money by an organisation which couldn't care less about being careful with our cash.
As a commercial furniture salesperson I can tell you that the chair champion is not there to teach them how to sit on their chairs - they will be taught how to adjust the chair correctly in order to avoid back problems, RSI and other problems associated with a desk based job. The choice of chairs will be based on height, weight and type of job and is offered as part of the purchasing selection process. This is a service which is usually offered by the chair manufacturers free of charge, and was probably negotiated as part of the furniture procurement process. All large corporate organisations do this now to minimise long term absence and reduce the risk of insurance claims for injury due to poorly adjusted seating.
It really isn't pleasant to see the MEN indulging in this kind of sub-Daily Mail BBC bashing. This paper really does need to stick up for its city a bit more, rather than going for the lowest common denominator of shocking headline that isn't borne out by fact.
I bet the reporter, Ms Walsh, has had just this type of health and safety check because most big organisations, and all responsible large employers, do them for people who are office-based.
it's all good training ready for the xmas party and musical chairs.
Gizza job. I could do that!!
Nothing to do with bad backs everything to do with a fear of being sued,everything to do with people using the excuse of a bad back for continual time of work,everything to do with preventing people going on long term sick due to a bad back and in its extreme people claiming they are now unable to work due to a bad back caused by inappropriate seating arrangements.
I have no doubt there are thousands of retired people who spent most of their working careers in the company typing pools of the 50's,60's,and 70's who if they were to read the above report would be having a proper chortle
How about the BBC asks people 'Can you sit on a chair' before employing them?
Sadly all too typical of the Beeb that has long forgotten its original purpose.
Coun Garrido said: "What a waste of money. I can’t believe we need to teach people how to sit on their chairs. They aren’t children."
THE TROUBLE IS PEOPLE LEAN THEIR CHAIRS BACK ON TWO LEGS etc, THEN HAVE AN INJURY, THEN CLAIM COMPENSATION FROM THE EMPLOYER (FORGETTING TO MENTION WHY THE CHAIR BROKE).
NOW THAT WILL HAVE HAD A DOCUMENTED INDUCTION SO THIS WILL MINIMISE SUCH FRAUDULENT BEHAVIOUR - WHICH IS RIFE IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR.
oh my god!! nothing else to say,would'nt mind his job though.
A work colleague used to boast that in the days when we had iron men flying wooden planes they flew them by the seat of their pants.
I have said if todays experts were in charge of training horses the horses would not know how to run. The mind boggles.