Office Chair - Recommendations...

Lil306

Could anyone recommend a make of office chair that has a strong reclining mechanism built into it.

I've recently become the butt of jokes where I work now because I'm the common fat person. I'm well aware I'm overweight but I don't appreciate being insulted about it. Or people generalising me as the chair killer

I'm having to ask for a replacement chair, they've all been the generic operator chairs that you can buy. First two broke because the welds cracked at the top of the gas strut where it connects to the base of the seat. My current seat the reclining functionality is broken and the back constantly goes down with little pressure on it. There is no way to adjust the tensioner

I've spoke to H&S about a new chair and it has to come out of my managers budget. So needless to say he had an unprofessional dig at me about the same thing which I'm !!!!!! off about.

I'm well aware I need to lose weight, but need recommendations on a chair which has strong back support for meets the relevant guidelines for HSE (up to 150kg) which won't lose strength easy in back support area.

I'm now feeling insulted and actually at the point where I want to walk our my job because I feel humiliated about breaking the chairs. Or I'm thinking of just sitting in my existing one because it will cause less problems.

My own personal chair at home is a £400 ergohuman chair and it's working perfectly for me. I know I fall into the top 1% of non-normal people in the workplace because I'm fat and heavy, but no-one has conducted a proper H&S assessment at my workplace and quite frankly they aren't interested in doing it either.

I'm now going to start recording everything when I go to work what is said to me, as it's come to the point where I'm contemplating leaving daily because of stress and abuse. I don't see why I should be subjected to it when the company is too tight to spend money on a proper ergonomic chair.

debitcardmayhem

Andrew how goes it ? not good by the sounds of it ... you may need to post on the Employment forum but hey put your old 306 bucket seat on the old stem. There may be a more relevant forum too , but I stick here mainly and occasionaly the drunken duck (moneysavings arms). Chin up Lily:p

Lil306

debitcardmayhem wrote: »

Andrew how goes it ? not good by the sounds of it ... you may need to post on the Employment forum but hey put your old 306 bucket seat on the old stem. There may be a more relevant forum too , but I stick here mainly and occasionaly the drunken duck (moneysavings arms). Chin up Lily:p

Thanks. I'm not jobless, just at that stage where I feel I'm being victimised in the job now. There's a nickname which someone gave me because I'm fat and it seems people on other shifts have adopted it as their name for getting my attention. Needless to say if it continues I'm speaking to HR.

I haven't really been on this forum much, still doing my youtube videos and website stuff, just a bit slower, trying to pay off bills first

I'll have a check about the forums too, been missing this place. If I had to leave my job and could afford it I'd work with animals. Only reason I work there is for bills nothing else.

debitcardmayhem

Lil306 wrote: »

Thanks. I'm not jobless, just at that stage where I feel I'm being victimised in the job now. There's a nickname which someone gave me because I'm fat and it seems people on other shifts have adopted it as their name for getting my attention. Needless to say if it continues I'm speaking to HR.

I haven't really been on this forum much, still doing my youtube videos and website stuff, just a bit slower, trying to pay off bills first

I'll have a check about the forums too, been missing this place. If I had to leave my job and could afford it I'd work with animals. Only reason I work there is for bills nothing else.

Didn't mean to suggest that you were , I had a thought that part of the forum also deals with Employment Issues too

RumRat

Go straight to HR and make the complaint. It won't stop until you have. While you are there let them know that H&S are not carrying out a required assessment and are restricting you getting the correct chair as they are insisting it comes from your managers budget. This should be a company issue and not the individual departments.
Carry on making any notes that will help your case moving forward. Any discrimination in the workplace should never be tolerated.
They won't be happy with a claim for injury because the chair that wasn't fit for purpose broke and injured you.
As a matter of interest, is this a local one depot business or a larger company?
As a recommendation for an office chair I would go with the one you have at home, once the companies eyes have been opened. However, the H&S assessment should also make recommendations.

I_have_spoken

Get a Herman - Miler Aeron seat, size C

Lil306

debitcardmayhem wrote: »

Didn't mean to suggest that you were , I had a thought that part of the forum also deals with Employment Issues too

Sorry, misread your interpretation of what I meant

RumRat wrote: »

Go straight to HR and make the complaint. It won't stop until you have. While you are there let them know that H&S are not carrying out a required assessment and are restricting you getting the correct chair as they are insisting it comes from your managers budget. This should be a company issue and not the individual departments.
Carry on making any notes that will help your case moving forward. Any discrimination in the workplace should never be tolerated.
They won't be happy with a claim for injury because the chair that wasn't fit for purpose broke and injured you.
As a matter of interest, is this a local one depot business or a larger company?
As a recommendation for an office chair I would go with the one you have at home, once the companies eyes have been opened. However, the H&S assessment should also make recommendations.

I will be I've been subjected to bullying continously in the workplace, just got to the point where I'm sick of it now. I put up with so much crap in my personal and work life I'm sick of dealing with it.

I've already made a comment that the assessment should have been done first and H&s reply when I asked for a risk assessment was "we do not assess desks". I asked them if they were not required to carry out a H&s assessment on me because I'm a computer user by law.... no reply

The company I work for is pretty large. Most people would know it although I'd rather not divulge at this date. They're tight-fisted, which means I'd most likely have to pay for one myself. Although like I mention later. IMO, the company should be buying the chair, not the dept. Since one dept may have a limited budget, whilst another has none.

I_have_spoken wrote: »

Get a Herman - Miler Aeron seat, size C

Strangely, that was the seat I was thinking of. I know they're amazing, but in reality I would have just picked the most expensive one to outright annoy them. The thing what embarasses me is no matter what seat I pick I know if it breaks I'll feel humiliated. In my eyes the company should be paying for a proper H&S to assess my work situation and make a selection on their decisions. Although tbh, the H&S in my company makes me wonder if they have a clue

Lil306

debitcardmayhem wrote: »

Didn't mean to suggest that you were , I had a thought that part of the forum also deals with Employment Issues too

Sorry, misread your interpretation of what I meant

RumRat wrote: »

Go straight to HR and make the complaint. It won't stop until you have. While you are there let them know that H&S are not carrying out a required assessment and are restricting you getting the correct chair as they are insisting it comes from your managers budget. This should be a company issue and not the individual departments.
Carry on making any notes that will help your case moving forward. Any discrimination in the workplace should never be tolerated.
They won't be happy with a claim for injury because the chair that wasn't fit for purpose broke and injured you.
As a matter of interest, is this a local one depot business or a larger company?
As a recommendation for an office chair I would go with the one you have at home, once the companies eyes have been opened. However, the H&S assessment should also make recommendations.

I will be I've been subjected to bullying continously in the workplace, just got to the point where I'm sick of it now. I put up with so much crap in my personal and work life I'm sick of dealing with it.

I've already made a comment that the assessment should have been done first and H&s reply when I asked for a risk assessment was "we do not assess desks". I asked them if they were not required to carry out a H&s assessment on me because I'm a computer user by law.... no reply

The company I work for is pretty large. Most people would know it although I'd rather not divulge at this date. They're tight-fisted, which means I'd most likely have to pay for one myself. Although like I mention later. IMO, the company should be buying the chair, not the dept. Since one dept may have a limited budget, whilst another has none.

I_have_spoken wrote: »

Get a Herman - Miler Aeron seat, size C

Strangely, that was the seat I was thinking of. I know they're amazing, but in reality I would have just picked the most expensive one to outright annoy them. The thing what embarasses me is no matter what seat I pick I know if it breaks I'll feel humiliated. In my eyes the company should be paying for a proper H&S to assess my work situation and make a selection on their decisions. Although tbh, the H&S in my company makes me wonder if they have a clue

RumRat

The Health and safety Display Screen Equipment (DSE) Regulations apply and the assessments are law the company cannot ignore them. They include assessment of the chair and desk for each individual. This is basic H&S that any company should be adhering to.
If you have an Occupational Health department, contact them with your concerns also.
Keep a copy of all eMails etc.
Good luck.
I would do as advised and nip over to the Employment section to further this.....

wiogs

Your company should be aware of and comply with the information here
http://books.hse.gov.uk/hse/public/saleproduct.jsf?catalogueCode=9780717625826

Lil306

Thanks, I'm not a HSE assessor. Although it was something I was interested in when I worked in IT, but when I emailed The H&S Manager who's in charge of the company he wasn't interested and tried fobbing me off then claimed they don't carry out desk assessments. I think when I asked if it was legal he started to realise I wasn't an average idiot who would accept no for an answer

I'm making notes of everything now as tbh my back was in agony when I was working long shifts for 2 weeks and I was getting shooting pains down the nerves in my legs. The only way I can relieve pressure and pain atm is by slouching. People don't realise how much it knocks your confidence and self esteem when you're fat and how you damaging the office property makes you feel. I lost all my apetite because I became self concious in case people started watching what I was eating

As for the company I work for. I won't reveal it incase this ends up going to a court of law for breach of H&S but I'm hoping it won't get that far. I only wanted a chair it's the fact that the company are trying to fob it off. Although like I said I really doubt they actually have a clue where I work