Pushing and Pulling Toolbox Talk: Use Your Legs, Not Your Back

Wheels make heavy loads feel easy, until a stuck caster, a ramp or a door threshold turns a gentle push into a back-wrenching heave. This pushing and pulling toolbox talk is for anyone who moves carts, roll cages, trolleys or hand pallet jacks. The crew will learn how to set up their body, their equipment and their route so their legs do the work.

Why does pushing and pulling matter?

CCOHS points out that pushing and pulling are among the most common work activities and cause many injuries. These usually get recorded as back strain, slips, or hands crushed between a cart and a wall, so their true scale is hard to see. CCOHS cites an upper limit of about 225 N (roughly 23 kgf) for whole-body pushing and pulling. Lower forces are safer, especially with hands above the shoulder or below the waist.

In the UK, HSE's manual handling brief guide says a push or pull is likely to be low risk when:

• force is applied with the hands,
• the torso is largely upright and not twisted,
• the hands are between hip and shoulder height,
• the distance without a pause is no more than about 20 m.

Leaning, slopes, uneven floors and tight spaces mean a closer look is needed. For warehouses, OSHA recommends maintaining pallet jacks so they run with minimum hand, arm and finger force.

Talking points for your pushing and pulling toolbox talk

• Push rather than pull. CCOHS advises pushing equipment rather than pulling it. You can see ahead and keep your body behind the load, not twisted to look back.
• Hands at about waist height, body close. Grip the handles between hip and shoulder height and stay close to the load. Reaching out at arm's length forces your back and shoulders to do the work.
• Lean in with your legs. Stagger your feet, keep your back fairly straight and drive from your legs. Avoid jerking the load to get it going.
• Wheels are a safety item. Worn, clogged or wrong-type castors can multiply the force needed. Check wheels and brakes before use and tag out anything that pulls or sticks.
• Clear the route first. Look for ramps, thresholds, cables, potholes and wet patches. Avoid slopes if there's another way, and get help on any incline.
• Watch your hands and feet. Keep fingers inside the handle line at doors and corners, and wear safety footwear around heavy carts.
• Get help when it won't budge. If a load is hard to start, stop. Ask for a second person, split the load or use a powered pallet truck or tug.

Example to share with the crew

Picture this: a worker pulls a fully loaded roll cage backwards out of a trailer because it's quicker than turning it. One wheel catches on the dock plate gap. He yanks it with a twisted back to free it, and the cage suddenly frees and rolls towards his heels.

Turning the cage to push it, checking the dock plate first, and asking a colleague to steady it would have taken an extra twenty seconds. That's a lot cheaper than a back injury.

Pushing and pulling checklist

• Carts, cages and pallet jacks are pushed rather than pulled where possible
• Handles sit between hip and shoulder height for the people using them
• Wheels and castors roll freely, suit the floor and have no damage
• Brakes work on any equipment used on slopes or ramps
• Routes are clear of debris, cables, potholes and spills
• Loads that are hard to start are split, shared or moved with powered equipment
• Faulty equipment is tagged out and reported

Questions to ask the crew

1. Which cart or trolley here is the hardest to push, and why?
2. Where on site do you have to pull rather than push, and could the route change?
3. When did you last report a sticky wheel or brake, and was it fixed?

For a deeper look at handling risks, read the manual handling risk assessment guide or the warehouse ergonomics guide.

How to close the talk

What this pushing and pulling toolbox talk comes down to: push, stay close and let your legs drive, and never fight a load that won't move. Report sticky wheels, bad routes or loads that are too hard to start to your supervisor or through the site's hazard report. There are more safety topics for toolbox talks in the full library.