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With the generalization of telework, musculoskeletal disorders and more specifically back pain, seem to be more and more widespread in the working population. In any case, this is demonstrated by the results of a survey carried out among a thousand employees by Ifop for Percko, a company which markets innovative products against back pain.
Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are on the rise, according to the Ifop study for Percko, “carried out by self-administered questionnaire online from December 6 to 8, 2022 with a sample of 1,004 people, representative of French employees“And among these disorders suffered by employees, it is back pain that comes up most often.
An increase in the proportion of employees suffering from MSDs
According to this survey, 72% of employees reported suffering from MSDs compared to 86% in 2022. A significant increase, led by back pain, which concerns 69% of respondents, ahead of neck pain at 58% and knee pain at 58%. 38%.
The two other anatomical locations for which pain is reported are the wrist in a third of cases and the elbow, for 15% of respondents.
Labor-related pain
According to the respondents, the cause of their pain comes for three quarters from work, in particular those who suffer from the back, who are 86% to attribute this pain to their professional activity. In this category, there are particularly manual workers and full-time teleworkers.
The study also assesses the distribution between the sexes: thus, 38% of women have pain at least once a week, against 27% of men. People who telework full time, regardless of gender, suffer more, with 46% of respondents reporting weekly pain.
Back pain, a trivialized evil
If the pain is indeed present, it does not mean that the respondents dare to ask for a work stoppage. Indeed, 42% of employees suffering from back pain admit that they have not dared to ask for a work stoppage because of back pain when they should have. In addition, the majority of teleworkers (60%) believe “insufficient participation of their company in the purchase of ergonomic equipment” and nearly half of employees (47%) “also consider it insufficient in their workplace”.
Equipment financing
With the progress of telework comes the need to provide equipment to teleworkers, in order to ensure them an optimal installation at their home workstation. This survey reveals that 73% of respondents “want companies to finance seats for teleworkers“, especially for those who telework part-time and who are sometimes less equipped than full-time teleworkers.