In light of the huge number of casual staff employed in the lead-up to Christmas, Toyota Industrial Equipment (UK) is offering copies of its manual handling guide free.

The guide gives employers and employees advice on the safest way to lift, stack and move items in the workplace. Toyota says the guide, approved by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), reinforces the importance of assessing manual handling practices.

From November 2001 to January 2002, about 1.6 million temporary workers made up 6.5 percent of all United Kingdom employees. Currently 36.5 percent of workplace accidents are due to materials handling, with 73.1 percent of those resulting in a sprain or strain injury. The HSE has also found 49.3 percent of back injuries are caused by incorrect goods handling.