The impact of Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSDs)

Data is an equaliser.

In dynamic, fast-paced, often unpredictable working environments, there have historically been few ways (if any) to combat workplace risk with the confidence that your initiatives are making a real difference.

But data - specifically, real-time data, about your workers’ individual exposure to risk - levels the playing field. Reliable, accurate data arms you with the information you need to do more than just meet your regulatory obligations: with this insight, you can truly understand your workplace risk environment and become empowered to take decisive and swift action that actually helps protect the health and safety of your workforce.

In this article, we’ll discuss the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) across the UK, and their impact on individuals and the economy. Finally, we’ll review how connected worker technology helps organisations take steps to better prevent these debilitating conditions.

Billions (and billions): the cost of WMSDs to workers, communities, and employers

The statistics surrounding WMSDs are - in a word - staggering.

Between 2023/24 there were over 540,000 cases of WMSDs in the UK. The most common work factors cited as causing WMSDs are manual handling, working in awkward positions, and repetitive motion or force. And in terms of cost: the impact on quality of life and costs to communities, combined with the cost of healthcare and lost production add up to an astonishing £2.3 Billion per year. According to the HSE, MSDs accounted for 7.8 million working days lost in 2023/2024.

And because of the nature and progression of musculoskeletal disorders - which vary greatly by type and degree and include Arthritis, Osteoporosis, inflammatory diseases, widespread pain conditions, and connective tissue diseases and disorders - workers who suffer from MSDs are unemployed at a rate that’s far higher than the average person. According to recent research, the employment rate for people with MSDs who were classed as disabled was approximately 57.5% in 2022/2023. In comparison, the employment rate for the general working age population was nearly 76%.

And this trend is making glacially slow progress in the right direction: in 2013/2014, workers who suffered from MSDs were employed at a rate of 51% - this means that the employment rate for workers with these conditions grew by just 6% in ten years. That means that - for ten whole years - time, technology, and our understanding of workplace risk and occupational disease have been marching forward - but workers are still suffering at disproportionately high rates.

"That means that - for ten whole years - time, technology, and our understanding of workplace risk and occupational disease have been marching forward - but workers are still suffering at disproportionately high rates."

Clearly, this means that the approaches most widely adopted to combat WMSDs have historically been (and still are) largely ineffective. It’s obvious that a step-change is needed to well and truly protect workers from these debilitating and life-altering conditions.

Quick stats: the far-reaching impact of WMSDs

Level the playing field with data: give employers and workers a fighting chance in the battle against WMSDs

Historically, employers have received guidance about managing MSDs at work via secondary legislation that addresses vibration, manual handling, and general health and safety practices in the workplace. The result is, typically, an indirect approach to monitoring and managing WMSDs that involves periodic third-party risk assessments and the provision of PPE.

But when it comes to meaningfully protecting workers from exposure to workplace conditions, which can cause or contribute to WMSDs, there’s clearly a question about what more can be done, and the answer lies in the collection and analysis of personalised, real-time data for driving meaningful change.

Technology designed to accelerate organisational change

When you adopt purpose-built technology for monitoring and managing your risk environment, you instantly gain an advantage in the fight against WMSDs. What was once guesswork becomes data-driven improvements to controls, worker behaviours, and workplace practices.

Instead of estimating whether or how much any one worker will be exposed to risk from vibration, repetitive motion or force, incorrect use of equipment, or improper movement - all of which are known to cause and contribute to WMSDs - employers can actually gather data that informs them, in real-time, of the when, where, and how much of their workers’ exposure to potentially dangerous workplace risks.

"When you adopt purpose-built technology for monitoring and managing your risk environment, you instantly gain an advantage in the fight against WMSDs. What was once guesswork becomes data-driven improvements to controls, worker behaviours, and workplace practices."

For decades, employers have been at a disadvantage when it comes to effectively tackling WMSDs. But with connected worker technology, organisations are finally in the position to take control of their workplace risk environment and better protect their workers from these debilitating conditions.

^{References and further reading:
1. Work-related Musculoskeletal disorders statistics in Great Britain
2. Musculoskeletal Disorders and Workplace Factors
3. Musculoskeletal Conditions and Employment}