LOW LIGHTING LIABILITY: Poor lighting can contribute to accidents whether workers notice it or not.

Shine a Light on Lighting Hazards by Jennifer Busick Topic: Fire Safety and Emergency Preparedness and Response

Unless they’re working in complete darkness, workers may not pay too much attention to lighting in the workplace. But poor lighting can contribute to accidents whether workers notice it or not. Here’s some advice on lighting the workplace for safety. The good news is that poor lighting is usually an easy fix that enhances safety in critical ways.

Shed Some Light Proper lighting has been shown to reduce both accidents and ergonomic injuries. Here's what the right light can do for your workers: Makes hazards easier to see. Workers are more likely to see obstructions and tripping hazards and to avoid collisions and falls when light levels are adequate. In addition, in an area such as a warehouse where bright light is not usually considered necessary, better lighting can improve workers’ ability to perform tasks like equipment inspections or reading labels, which can enhance safety. Improve alertness. Studies have shown that workers on third shift are more alert under bright lighting than dim—you may need to provide more lighting for them than for workers on first or second shift. Improve security. Improved security lighting can reduce the possibility of assault and reduce theft and vandalism, which can lead to assault or injury. Reduce eyestrain. For tasks requiring attention to detail, bright lighting is a must. Without it, workers will experience headaches, nausea, and other symptoms of eyestrain. The right lighting for this type of task also takes glare into account; glare and insufficient illumination both contribute to eyestrain. Brighten Your Corner Improving lighting doesn’t have to be difficult. Some simple, low-cost ways to improve lighting in your workplace include: Clean your fixtures. The cost is negligible and the benefits can be enormous. Just cleaning your light fixtures can improve the light output from existing bulbs. Paint the walls and ceiling. Light-colored paint will reflect the light from your existing fixtures, improving illumination. Consider whether a lighter color on machinery and work surfaces could also improve overall visibility and illumination. Let the sun shine in. Are there windows in your workplace that have been painted over or walled off? Open them back up! Consider replacing some of your roofing panels with skylights. Natural light is one of the best lighting sources for humans. Install dimmers. After dark, bright artificial light can help workers stay alert. To reduce artificial light when natural light is available, and increase artificial light after the sun goes down, consider installing dimmers or installing new light fixtures exclusively for use by third-shift employees. Install task lighting. Light that would be too bright for comfort (and too expensive for the budget if you tried to provide it everywhere) may be ideal if focused on a small area, such as a worker’s desk. Arrange task lighting based on the job being performed: Backlighting sets an object off from the background. Overhead lighting that hits an object at an angle reveals detail and texture. Front lighting that hits an object directly reveals detail, but can conceal texture. Reduce shadows and glare. Blinds or curtains enable workers to control glare from windows. Flexible arms on task lights permit them to be moved so that they provide the best light with the least glare. Matte paints in the workplace will allow light to be reflected but will minimize glare. Tomorrow, we’ll look at another type of safety-related lighting: emergency lighting.  Inadequate Lighting Injuries Inadequate lighting can present serious safety and health hazards to someone visiting a private residence, business, or other public place. Massachusetts law requires property owners and business owners to provide an environment that as reasonably safe for people who are lawfully on their premises. This includes conducting regular inspections, make necessary repairs, and provide warnings about any unsafe conditions like inadequate lighting. Types of Inadequate Lighting Inadequate lighting can occur in a wide variety of situations. A power outage in a business like a store or other facility can result in an injury from inadequate lighting because there are no emergency lights, or a back-up generator is not available or used. Other examples of inadequate lighting include: Light bulbs that are not properly maintained or are burned out Turning off or lowering the lights in a store or other facility before all of the customers or people inside have had a chance to exit the building Failure to install proper or adequate lighting where needed Failure to replace lights that have been damaged Failure to turn on house lights in a movie theater when patrons are entering or leaving When the lighting is not adequate in an area, a person who is walking or trying to navigate the area may be unable to see certain hazards like potholes, broken stairs, a buckle in the sidewalk, or other obstacles. Furthermore, they often cannot see where they are landing and cannot see to grab anything to break their fall so they tend to fall very hard. Injuries Caused by Inadequate Lighting Injuries that are caused by inadequate lighting are typically injuries from a “slip and fall.” They can be serious, resulting in time lost from work, impact family life, and even impact a person’s quality of life. The CDC reports that one out of five falls results in broken bones, a head injury, or other type of serious injury. More than 700,000 patients are hospitalized each year because of injury due to a fall and 2.5 million older people are seen in the emergency department because of fall injuries. Types of injuries resulting from inadequate lighting can include: Neck, spine, and back injuries – includes broken back or neck, slipped disk, pinched nerve, injury that causes chronic pain, requires surgery, or causes disability. Torn ligaments and tendons – includes torn ligaments or tendons in the wrists, knees, ankles, and feet that may require physical therapy, surgery, permanent disability, and extended time off from work. Head injuries – includes traumatic brain injuries or brain damage which may cause behavioral problems, cognition problems, memory problems, and ongoing mobility issues and require extensive rehabilitation or even surgery. Broken pelvis or broken hip – includes a fracture or break to the hip or pelvis resulting in hip replacement surgery or prolonged stay in a rehabilitative facility or nursing home. Many victims of slip and fall accidents are senior citizens. The elderly are more likely to fall and have an increased chance of sustaining injury when they fall. When an older person is injured, especially when a bone is broken, such as a hip or pelvis, it can be devastating. Legal Rights for Victims of Inadequate Lighting Injuries If you have had an accident on someone else’s property due to inadequate lighting, you may be eligible for compensation. In a liability claim for inadequate lighting, you are required to show that: You were not trespassing; that you were on the property legally or the owner knew you were on the property and you had their permission There was inadequate lighting and the owner should have known or did have knowledge of it and either failed to provide satisfactory warning or fix it. The injuries you sustained were the direct result of negligence on the part of the owner or other party in control.