The Risks

Using a workstation which has not been assessed and customised for your needs means you could be working with poor posture. Along with sitting for long periods of time without a break, this can lead to many musculoskeletal disorders such as back pain, upper body pain and repetitive strain injuries.

The facts

The following statistics released in the UK in September 2005 demonstrate the growing worry regarding RSI:*

  • 448,000 British workers now suffer from RSI - a jump of 52,000 since 2001/02 - with rates in the North East soaring ahead of other regions.
  • In 2003/2004, health and social workers replaced builders as the workforce most affected by RSI.
  • 4.7 million working days in Great Britain (full-time equivalent) were lost due to RSI in 2003/04.
  • Of those afflicted, each person took an average of 18.3 days off in that time.
  • It has been estimated that the cost to UK industry from RSI is likely to be up to £20 billion annually.
  • Every day, six people in the UK leave their jobs due to an RSI condition.
  • 1 in 50 of all workers in the UK have reported an RSI condition.
  • 80% of people will suffer from back pain at some point in their lives.

There are no similar statistics available for the Australian workforce. What is clear however, is that the types of jobs and workplaces in Australia do not differ greatly from those in the UK. There is no reason to believe that statistics for Australian workers would be any different to those found in the UK studies.

* All figures relating to number of days lost through RSI caused or made worse by work, and the cost to UK industry are sourced from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) www.hse.gov.uk, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) www.tuc.org.uk and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP).

Who is at risk?

Though Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) are not only experienced by people working with computers, this group certainly exhibits the greatest prevalence due to the massive rise in computer use over the past 20 years.

Workstation Injuries affect many groups of working people in a wide variety of occupations, including:

  • Computer operators
  • Laboratory technicians
  • Musicians
  • Those in the construction industry and factory workers

The Causes

The major cause of musculoskeletal disorders, back pain and RSI's in office workers is clear - improper computer workstation use!

With more work now being computer based (and many of us having computers at home as well as at work) we are spending much longer sat at a computer. This, coupled with poor posture and repetitive movement, can cause strain to many parts of the body, including backs, necks, wrists.