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Absence through Back Pain!
“Sitting is a rest position supported in humans by the buttocks or thighs where the torso is more or less upright. Sitting for much of the day may pose significant health risks, and people who sit regularly for prolonged periods have higher mortality rates than those who do not” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitting: Biswas A, Oh PI, Faulkner GE, Bajaj RR, Silver MA, Mitchell MS, Alter DA (2015). ‘Sedentary Time and Its Association With Risk for Disease Incidence, Mortality, and Hospitalization in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis’)
As statistic go, that is a pretty scary one!
Various studies into employee absence has led to an increase in our understanding of the way in which ergonomic factors can influence health and wellbeing in the workplace, and this has been a driving factor in the growth of the ergonomic furniture industry.
- 131 million days were lost due to sickness absences in the UK in 2013, down from 178 million days in 1993.
- Minor illnesses were the most common reason given for sickness absence but more days were lost to back, neck and muscle pain than any other cause.
The cost to employers every year runs into the hundreds of millions! When statistics such as these, from the Office of National Statistics, are published (http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/lmac/sickness-absence-in-the-labour-market/2014/rpt—sickness-absence-in-the-labour-market.html) it drives employers to seek ways in which to redress the balance. How do we keep people in work, from a purely financial point of view! If employees are healthy, if they feel valued by their employer and the right chair, the right desk, the right environment, they will be more productive. The UK economy as a whole will be more productive!
