Understanding and managing fatigue in the workplace

Understanding and managing fatigue in the workplace

According to SafeWork Australia, fatigue is defined as more than just feeling tired or drowsy. It is mental and/or physical exhaustion that reduces a person’s ability to perform work safely and effectively. Fatigue can often be a common side effect of an injury and/or use of medication taken to treat an injury.

Signs that a worker is suffering from fatigue can include:

  • Tiredness (even if they have had adequate sleep)
  • Slower reflexes
  • Problems with short-term memory
  • Inability to concentrate
  • Reduced hand-eye coordination
  • Blurred vision
  • A need for extended sleep during time off work

Fatigue not only impacts the mental and physical health of an individual, it can also impact others in the workplace. Fatigue can result in poor decision making or slower reactions to work situations regardless of the role or industry the employee is working in.

A person’s ability to perform all aspects of a job safely on a consistent and reliable basis is imperative when a recruiter or hiring manage assesses their current work capacity and suitable employment prospects.

An employment assessment performed by one of our Human Resources professionals can provide an expert recruitment opinion on your clients’ current work capacity, their realistic employment prospects into suitable employment and/or gaining employment in the open labour market, subsequent to an injury.

If you would like further information on this topic, or would you like further information about the reports that Flexi Personnel’s Employment Assessment team can provide, please contact Katherine Rintoule on 93609722 or find out more at Employment Assessment team website.