Occupational hazards of bank work revealed
Fortunes may be at their fingertips, but Hong Kong banks' clerical staff suffer from poor health because of the strains of the job, according to a survey.
It found bank staff worked long hours with heavy workloads, often in unsafe and crammed spaces that left most suffering from occupational illnesses and pressure.
The Hong Kong Banking Employees Association, which carried out the survey between August and November, likened the work conditions to a 'slow poison' eating away at the health of staff.
Ninety per cent of 279 bank staff interviewed said they had suffered body pain in the past year, mostly in the neck, shoulders, upper back and wrist.
Forty per cent said they worked more than 10 hours a day.
Association chairwoman Lee Lai-ching said of the working condition in banks: 'The chairs are too high and uncomfortable for bank tellers, and the tables are tall also. Most have to stand to work. And their elbows have nowhere to rest as the table is so narrow and tall.
'Banks have increased the comfort of customers by providing seating for them, but bank tellers are left with a very crammed working environment.'
Many bank staff reported tiredness after 11/2 to two hours.
Ms Lee said the problems were partly caused by banks reducing branch numbers, which resulted in more customers. She produced a picture of a bank teller whose thumbs were deformed from continually counting banknotes.
Customer service staff also were prone to problems from spending many hours standing in lobby areas.
The survey also found that 43.2 per cent had suffered from work pressure as a result of long working hours and workloads.
The association will ask banks to increase manpower to reduce work pressure and overtime, create a safe working environment, and give staff breaks every two hours.
Unionist Ip Wai-ming urged the Labour Department to enforce the occupational safety ordinance.
