Keeping WH&S simple

Hairdressing has always been an industry of long term injuries.

e.g. Repetitive strain injury (RSI), carpal tunnel, neck and hip injuries.

It is important that we educate on how to eliminate these risks.

Therefore once we determine the risks, we will be aware of the precautions, continue to provide a safe working environment and continue to check the effectiveness of WH&S standards.

There is risk of a hairdresser cutting themselves or injuring themselves through wrong tool, or hand and body positioning.

HOW can this happen???

The occupational overuse syndrome often develops over a period of time. This is believed to occur when working with one scissor in the same hand position for a long duration of time. This is where we advocate that hairdressers are advised of all the options available to minimise this injury.

Awareness of repetitive and sustained awkward positions is vital to hairdressers in understanding the amount of injury that can be involved with our industry. KL Hair Academy is currently educating hairdressers on the use of hand skills, correct use of their scissors and advocating more than one scissor in their kit. Any person merely selling scissor to you or your staff may be exposing you and them to many harmful risks.

Addressing body aches and pains is most important for us to keep our posture straight and aligned with our client and being very aware of how we swing our hips.

The use of finger rests is also important, not only because our pinkie fingers are a connection to our neck but because they give our hand's balance for many of our horizontal cutting techniques.

Inserts should only be used for grip of our hands, and our fingers should be beautifully rounded and in a soft comfortable position with no strain. Allow the scissors to be an extension of your hands, inserts should be changed regularly due to hygiene standards.

• Are your scissors blades blunt?
• Have the scissors not been not been serviced, oiled, chamois, tightened and maintained correctly?

Blunt scissors can cause repetitive strain injury and makes the hairdresser use force with their thumb, and have to literally CUT THE HAIR. Bad hand skills are developed, time for cutting is increased and this can also make the hairdresser underestimate their skill level.

Loose scissors are like a tyre with not enough air. They are hard to drive and will make the hair buckle once again increasing time and decreasing skill.

Sharp scissors can cause injury if not handled correctly. We encourage the hairdresser to learn more vertical techniques, work away from the hair and know how to master each blade.

Work trolley safety

Scissors can be worn in a belt, in a case or stored in the first drawer of a trolley. Do not place your scissors on the top of trolleys as the tools are susceptible to blade damage or chipping from chemicals, clips, product tins or the weight of blow-dryers. A clean towel should be placed in the trolley daily.

Razor containers are always to be used, and used razors blades are never to be left on trolleys.

Floors and workstations are to be swept and cleaned ASAP after each client or service. Blow-dryers should not be put on the floor or trolleys, and should be switched off between clients.

First Aid

In the event of a cutting incident, a First Aid Kit should be available and fully maintained, Antibacterial hand wash, paper towels, bandaids or plastic skin should be used.

If a client has been harmed, they too should have this procedure followed.

After an incident, all scissors and combs should be cleaned with bacterial wipes, run under boiling water, oiled and chamois.

Stools should be of four prong legs and only used in limited circumstances. The core energy posture of our body is from the shoulders to the waist. Our arms are not recommended to be higher or lower than this area as this can cause strain and injury to the body and lack of control of our scissors.

Our philosophy is simple, we teach:

TOOL, TECHNIQUE AND CONSULTATION 

Unfortunately many hairdressers think.. consultation, as  they do not realise how much there is to know about their scissors.  They will quite often struggle with mastering the art of the techniques, and will often PANIC during the service or revert back to their safe way of cutting. They often work far too hard, rather than working easily and being more time effective.

Cutting training sessions  

At KL Hair Academy, we believe:

• That each student should be notified of the intended scissor that the educator will be using, allowing them to have the correct scissor to achieve the technique whilst in training.
• Tripods should be provided for hands-on seminars, not clamps on trestle tables. Therefore the stylists will NOT be training on their knees, or sitting at an incorrect height on a chair.
• All tools should be inspected and adjusted prior to the training; this will allow effective training for each student.

There is a government incentive for our apprentices - $4300.00 over a three year period. We hope that this incentive is used responsibly and wisely by investing in tools and ongoing education, and to advance our apprentices in this wonderful industry.