Ergonomic Chairs or Standing Desk?

When it comes to looking out for the health of your employees, there are a number of things to consider. This could be anything from making sure they are content with the work they are being asked to do, ensuring their stress levels are manageable and making sure they are having a healthy work-life balance. Something else that is important to consider is how comfortable they are whilst working. Office furniture can make or break an employee’s productivity; the more comfortable they are, the less pain they are in, and the better the standard of work that they produce. Two of the most popular pieces of furniture to improve employee health are ergonomic chairs and standing desks – but which is the best?

First, let’s take a look at an ergonomic chair. Ergonomic furniture is designed with comfort in mind, and an ergonomic chair will offer support to the lower back where a normal office chair would not.

Pros:

Improves posture – preventing pain and injuries
Offers more comfort than a typical chair (lumbar support and headrests)
Eliminates back and hip pain
Adjustable; can be customised to fit each individual and their needs

Although there are a lot of pros to ergonomic chairs, there can also be some cons, including:

Expensive – they cost more than standard office chairs.
Bulky and difficult to move around
Can take up lots of space in the office
Not necessarily suitable for everyone – can be uncomfortable for people who are not used to them.

A standing desk, on the other hand, is a type of desk that allows an employee to stand whilst doing their work. Some of the pros of using a standing desk are:

Major reduction in weight gain and obesity
Improves an employee’s posture – this in turn helps prevent pain and injuries
Reduces neck and back pain – best for employees with a history of back pain
Improves circulation
Can make more room as no need for a chair

Some of the cons include:

Expensive
Not every office will be able to accommodate them
Standing for extended periods of time can be tiring, so you may have to invest in ergonomic chairs when employees do not want to stand
Employees who are used to sitting down all day may find it difficult to adjust to standing up

So which one is the best for employees? Although standing for extended periods of time can get tiresome, it is always healthier than sitting down. Even standing for just a short amount of time can allow for your employees to recharge and rejuvenate, helping to raise their productivity and standard of work. If you want to introduce some flexibility into the workplace, you could invest in a standing desk converter. A standing desk converter attaches to a regular desk and can be moved up and down according to the employee’s needs. This would be perfect for employees who would find standing all day to be strenuous on their bodies. A standing desk converter would also be helpful for those employees who work both from the office and at home. That way, they could be comfortable and productive wherever they were working from. Similar to standing desk converters, lower back cushions that provide the same lumbar support that ergonomic chairs do can also be purchased.

While both ergonomic chairs and standing desks can be costly, there are office desk wholesale offers out there like the ones offered by Autonomous. They also offer wholesale office chair deals that give you discounts for bulk orders. By taking advantage of these wholesale offers, you can get top office furniture at the best rates.

With all this being said, it is important to note that both ergonomic chairs and standing desks don’t come cheap. And though the cost of both is quite high, you should be making your decisions with the best interests of your employees in mind, not the best interest of your wallet; the more comfortable an employee is, the better work they will produce. Studies have shown that after the introduction of ergonomic furniture into offices, employees have made less errors, had less absences, and morale has been higher. For the best results, investing in both would be better. No two employees are the same and therefore require different support needs whilst working. Allowing employees to choose how they want to work will show how you value them and therefore increase productivity and morale.