The TUC is today urging employers to use their legal powers to inspect their workplace for the risks of RSI. The symptoms include pain and immobility in the joints, nerves and muscles from the fingers to the neck.
Last year, 5.4 million days were lost in sick leave due to RSI, and every day, six workers left their jobs forever because of RSI, even though if caught early enough it can be treated by changing the way work and workplaces are arranged, or by physiotherapy. About a third of workers with RSI are under 45, and just over half (55%, or 276,000) are women.
Employers should be aware of their potential liability for failing to deal with RSI in the workplace. A few years ago, a court ordered Barclays Bank to pay compensation of £244,000 to a former employee who was forced to give up work as a result of pain in her right hand. Fiona Conaty had worked as a bank clerk and argued that a defective work station caused her to carry out keyboard work with an unsuitable posture. Her symptoms developed over 2 years, after which time Miss Conaty was unable to tie her shoes or even comb her hair. She was only 28 years old at the time of the case.
The TUC guidance highlights the main factors at work which cause RSI, namely repetitive work, working posture, use of force and vibration. Safety reps are being asked to inspect their workplace on International RSI Awareness Day, which falls on the last day of February every year (because it is the only non-repeating date in the calendar - sometimes it's 28th February, sometimes it's 29th).