The Most Common Workplace Injuries and How to Prevent Them
According to Work Injury Source, an employee is injured on the job every seven seconds. When you do the math, this equates to around seven million work-related injuries per year, and ultimately an even larger bill. Work-related injuries can happen to any business regardless of their size, industry, or the particular job being done. In order to prevent a financial demise from easily preventable injuries, it’s important that business owners be familiar with and prepared for the most common workplace injuries and know how to prevent them from happening.
Injury #1: Sprains, Strains, Tears
The most common workplace injuries are caused by overexertion and/or falls and slips. These injuries include sprains, strains, and tears and take roughly ten days to heal. These types of injuries often require employees to miss work or limit their production.
Prevention tips: Allow employees frequent breaks, implement caution signs, enforce stretching
Injury #2: Soreness or Pain
Injuries stemming from overcompensation, a chronic condition, or strenuous repetition are the second most common work-related injury. Injuries such as back pain from sitting for extended periods of time are one of the leading injuries for office workers. Employees that let soreness or pain build up over time will often miss about seven days of work while recovering. Because of this, some employees would rather deal with the pain than missing work, resulting in lower quality of work and a decreased morale.
Prevention tips: Implement standing desks, enforce walking breaks, give adequate health coverage for doctor visits
Injury #3: Cuts, Lacerations, Punctures
Contact with objects and equipment results in the third most common workplace injuries. These injuries include cuts, lacerations, and punctures along with fractures, breaks, and concussions. Recovery time for these injuries ranges from 3-4 days to 6-10 months depending on the severity.
Prevention tips: Thoroughly train employees, use caution signs, enforce proper protection, enhance supervision
Injuries are inevitable, but they shouldn’t cost your business a fortune. The best way to ensure that both your employees and your business are protected from these common workplace injuries is by reviewing your safety guidelines as well as your current worker’s compensation policy.
If you have any questions about adding to or reviewing your current policy with us, feel free to reach out to us here. Or, if you’re new to the insurance world, we’d love to get you started.