The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division (Oregon OSHA) will be offering a free training session to members of the Portland-area business community about office ergonomics and protecting workers from bloodborne pathogens during December.

Oregon OSHA will be offering "Ergonomics in the Office" on Thursday December 5 from 8:00am to Noon. The workshop will be held at the Sheet Metal Workers Training Center Room #211, 2379 NE 178th Avenue in Portland (near Interstate 84 and 181st). Oregon OSHA provides workshop materials for participants, and there is no charge for the workshop.

The workshop will be an introduction to ergonomics, the science concerning human performance and safety in relation to their job's equipment, tools and environment. The focus of the workshop is the unique ergonomic problems office workers may face, including poor workstation configuration, selecting the correct video-display computer system, and controlling cumulative motion trauma.

In 2000, almost 26 percent of the 1.7 million Americans injured at work were service sector workers with injuries related to muscle, nerve or tendon damage. Practicing good ergonomics in the workplace can increase work productivity by reducing down-time caused by worker injuries, stress and fatigue.

Oregon OSHA will also offer a free "Exposure Control/Bloodborne Pathogens" training workshop to help employers develop a written exposure control program, and understand protective equipment and practices needed by workers who encounter needles, or who may be exposed to bodily fluids, in their work site. This workshop will occur Thursday December 5 from 1:00pm to 5:00pm at the Sheet Metal Workers Training Center Room #211 in Portland. Oregon OSHA provides workshop materials for participants.

Oregon OSHA offers a variety of conferences, on-site training, educational resources and consultation services to help Oregon employers create safer workplaces and reduce the amount of productivity lost due to injuries which occur at work. Additional information and resources are available on Oregon OSHA's website, www.orosha.org

For more information about these workshops or to register, call the Oregon OSHA Education Section, (503) 947-7443, or toll-free in Oregon, (888) 292-5247 Option 2.