Back injuries are a very common problem in the workplace. In fact, statistics show that over 1,000 back injuries occur on a daily basis. In many cases, lifting improperly is the cause of the back injuries that occur on the job. Since a back injury can be very costly to a company over time, it is important to focus on preventing injuries in the workplace. Safety training in the workplace is one of the best ways to prevent back injuries from occurring. Good safety training classes focus on providing helpful information, helpful lifting techniques and work on behavior modification to ensure that employees change their practices on the job to reduce the chance of an injury.
Who is at Risk?
While anyone can end up with a back injury on the job, certain individuals may be more likely to suffer from a back injury. Back pain and injuries may result from various circumstances and certain work related risk factors should be considered when deciding who is at risk. Some of the common risk factors for an on-the-job back injury include the following:
- Frequent and repetitive lifting
- Heavy work or heavy lifting
- Occasional lifting that is very stressful
- Lifting loads that are very close to an individual’s strength capacity
- Prolonged standing or sitting
- Unforeseen accidents
- Bending, pulling, twisting, pushing and carrying on the job
Although safety training in the work place is helpful for any employee, it is important to focus safety training efforts towards employees that are more likely to end up with a back injury. Companies should take the time to identify jobs that have significant risk factors. Next, it is important to identify specific tasks that may place an employee at a higher risk of injury.
Investing in Safety Training
Many companies today are working on tight budgets, making some companies wonder if it is worth it to invest in safety training in the work place. Safety training is definitely worth the investment, since good training can reduce the risk of accidents of back injuries, actually saving companies money in the long run. While it may seem costly to invest in proper back injury prevention training, it is much cheaper that losing employee production and paying for medical bills that will result if an employee sustains a back injury. If your employees have not received proper safety training, make sure you invest in back injury prevention training to help reduce the risk of back injures on the job.
