Back disorders are the most common form of ill health at work and can arise in many work situations. Tackling back pain needs good management and a partnership approach as in any business, large or small, workers are the most valuable asset.

What can lead to back pain in the workplace?

Back pain, the exact cause is often unclear, but back pain is more common in tasks that involve:

• Driving long distances or driving over rough ground, particularly if the seat is not, or cannot be, properly adjusted or adequately sprung.
• Operating heavy equipment, such as an excavator, can lead to excessive jolting and jarring.
• Heavy manual labour, and handling tasks in heavy industry;
• Manual handling in awkward places, like delivery work;
• Repetitive tasks, such as manual packing of goods;
• Sitting at a workstation for a long period of time if the workstation is not correctly arranged or adjusted to fit the person, eg working with computers;.