Musculoskeletal disorders
[ch 1: page 15]Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) account for over a fifth of working days lost and almost a fifth of absences. Workers with MSDs face many barriers to job satisfaction, job mobility and access to training,
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) points out that back pain is a major cause of work-related sickness absence and can affect every type of business. However, it is not the only type of MSD that can cause employees to take time off and it can be difficult to identify the link between injury and the work done.
Proper monitoring of sickness absence can help identify the causes of MSDs, which will enable them to be tackled early on, provided that data protection rules and principles are taken into account (see Chapter 3). Monitoring could help identify those cases where an employee is likely to take time off and need help in getting back to work, as well as those which could be resolved quickly.
The HSE says: “The general messages for people who suffer back pain are they should stay active, try simple pain relief and seek medical help if necessary. This would include getting back to work, so employees with back pain and other injuries should be encouraged to come back to work where possible. It may be that there are simple temporary measures that can be agreed, such as reduced hours so they can avoid peak travel times, which would make the process easier”.