In accordance with the Regulation of the Minister of Labour and Social Policy of 1 December 1998 on health and safety at work in stations equipped with on-screen monitors, an office chair, as well as a desk (table), a document holder and a footrest, is included in the accessories of the workplace. § 4. this Regulation obliges the employer to organize the workstation with the on-screen monitor in such a way as to meet the minimum requirements of health and safety at work and ergonomics. These requirements are set out in the annex to the document.

In the Annex, which is entitled Minimum health and safety requirements and ergonomics to be met by workplaces equipped with screen monitors, officials have devoted as many as eight sub-items to a relatively detailed description of the construction and parameters of the office chair, which should ensure the safety and comfort of the worker.

According to the regulations, the office chair should have:

• stability, thanks to at least a five-support base fitted with wheels;
• backrest and seat with dimensions that ensure a comfortable position of the body and freedom of movement;
• adjustable seat height in the range of 400 – 500 mm, counting from the floor;
• adjustment of the height of the backrest;
• adjusting the backrest tilt in the range of 5° forward and 30º backward;
• contoured backrest and seat in accordance with the natural bending of the spine and the femoral segment of the lower extremities;
• the ability to rotate around the vertical axis in the 360° range;
• armrests, located at a height of 190 to 250 mm from the seat plate.

In addition, the Minister notes that all mechanisms for adjusting the seat height and the tilt of the backrest should be easily accessible, easy to operate and positioned in such a way that they can be operateable in a sitting position.

The Annex to the Regulation draws attention to the need for a flat, resting foot setting on the floor when working in a position equipped with a screen monitor. If the height of the chair prevents such arrangement, the employer should necessarily equip the workplace with a footrest. But the right to a foot rest is granted to the employee even if the condition of resting foot setting is met – it is enough to make such a request.

The angle of inclination of the footrest should not exceed 15° (it can also be completely flat) and its height should be adapted to the anthropometric characteristics of the worker. Its surface must not be slippery and the footrest itself must not move during use.

Source: https://consido.pl/krzesla-biurowe-przepisy-bhp/