Do you work in an office? Do you get regular back pain and headaches from sitting at a desk all day? If so you could be one of the people who cost companies £7 billion a year in sick pay due to their working environment.
According to a study conducted by Fellowes, an ergonomics specialist, around half of workers say they have been ill as a direct result of where they work. Three quarters of people blamed their desk and two thirds say they now require medication for their condition.
But what is the biggest illness coming from the office environment? Headaches, back pain and depression have affected seven out of ten people in the study and one in five have taken two to three works off work because of it. GP, Dr Sarah Jarvis gave her views on the results of the study.
She said: “What is very clear from the research is that the way you work and the equipment you use has a major impact, not just on your workplace health, but on your wider health too.
“On a daily basis I see many patients suffering particularly from back pain, and I ask routinely about workplace set-up because I know the consequences of poor posture and spending long periods sitting in the wrong position.”
Another alarming issue highlighted by the study was that half of those surveyed said they had not had a workstation risk assessment completed in the last year, even though it is a legal requirement.
Does your workplace conduct workstation risk assessments each year? If not, you may want to request one as it is your health that will be at risk.
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