The Well Workplace

Just as the pedometer took over the workplace wellness initiatives of recent years, wearable technologies continue to make their way into the industrial workplace. In 2015, we reviewed some of the latest tools to be developed in an effort to increase workplace safety. As with everything else technology-related these days, the creation of these tools moves fast and furious, and there is already a slew of new tech-based tools appearing in factories worldwide, as recently noted by the Wall Street Journal.

Ever wondered what slips, trips and falls injuries are costing employers annually? Billions of dollars. $17.92 billion to be exact. That is the amount of direct workers’ compensation costs related to slips, trips and falls (STFs) injuries in the U.S. according to the 2016 Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index of the top ten disabling workplace injuries that are nonfatal.

When you hear the term “workplace wellness program,” what comes to mind? You may think of initiatives that include wellness assessments, fitness, nutrition, weight loss, smoking cessation or proactive disease management. While these are important factors to consider when planning a workplace wellness program, there is another important aspect of wellness that employers cannot forget to include: ergonomics.

Employers who invest in workplace health and safety programs are seeing measurable results in the reductions in workers' comp injuries, and as the numbers of employers making those investments has risen in recent years, nationwide rates of many common types of on-the-job injuries have fallen. However, according to an article published by Risk & Insurance Magazine, shoulder injuries are a notable exception to that trend, with some workers' comp experts seeing an upward tick in lost-time claims for these injuries. Others are seeing rates of claims for shoulder injuries remain stubbornly constant, even as the frequency of lost-time claims for injuries to most body parts fell by an average of 13.9 percent.

Workplace ergonomics is a topic that employers are continuing to hear a lot about, not least because maintaining an ergonomic workplace drastically reduces the risk of employees developing musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). This particular type of injury has become the most common in the occupational setting and, according to OSHA, accounts for 600,000 injuries every year. MSDs are also the root cause of 34 percent of all lost workdays, and one in every three dollars spent on workers' compensation.

OSHA's Work Restriction Protection (WRP) program is a component of its ergonomics standard, which was devised and implemented to aid in preventing injuries of a specific type: work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). According to the agency, MSDs rank as the most widespread occupational health hazard, with nearly two million workers suffering these types of injuries every year. Approximately 600,000 of these workers lose time from work as a result of their injuries, and the most severe injuries may put employees out of work for months or even cause permanent disability.