What are people made of, really? When it comes down to it, we’re just arms, legs, a head, and a back. Your back is most of you. So when your back’s in pain, it’s pretty hard to forget about it and go back to your everyday routine. Your whole existence starts to focus in on the pain, and, soon, you find yourself fantasizing about a life free of your ailment. As Charles Grodin espoused on the FX show Louie, “Every second spent without back pain is a lucky second. Put those lucky seconds together, and you’ve got a lucky minute.” But, as a disability claims lawyer will tell you, it would be a lot better if luck had nothing to do with it. If, especially while working, you’ve sustained a back injury, a Toronto personal injury lawyer can help you get compensation for your suffering.
The Basics of Back Pain
Back pain falls under the umbrella of chronic musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). Other MSD injuries include muscle strain, tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, or tennis elbow, to name a few. Depending on the literature, MSDs might also be referred to as repetitive strain injuries, cumulative trauma disorders, or repetitive motion injuries. Regardless of the terminology, these all denote injuries that develop from the effects of repetitive, forceful, and/or awkward movements on bones, joints, muscles, ligaments, and other soft tissue. Since we work for eight hours or more at a stretch, work that involves repetitive motion can, over time, cause MSDs.
The Cost of Workplace Back Pain
Workplace injuries are doubly costly. On one side, they put the afflicted worker out of commission, causing them to miss out on wages. On the other, employers lose a valuable worker, causing a decrease in efficiency and costly lost time claims. Ontario’s worker compensation system approves nearly 200,000 MSD lost time claims annually—which amounts to direct costs of more than $314 million.
How Employers can Prevent Workplace Back Injury
As a disability claims lawyer knows, many employers do not take adequate measures to protect their workers from chronic issues. Even if you and your coworkers are not suffering from any MSDs right now, a Toronto personal injury lawyer will be the first to recommend that your workplace puts safety measures in place. Preventative steps are about protecting you for the future. Your workplace should:
- Advise and train workers on the specific risks of the job and the workplace;
- Encourage workers to report on any MSD symptoms or new risk factors;
- Put in place controls to reduce workers’ exposure to risk factors; and
- Periodically evaluate the efficacy of these preventative measures.
The law on back injuries in the workplace can often be confusing. A disability claims lawyer can help you to sort out the legalities, so that you can focus on getting (your) back into shape. After all, your goal shouldn’t be stringing together lucky minutes, it should be forgetting why you called them lucky minutes in the first place. Book your free consultation with the best Toronto personal injury law firm today.
Sources:
http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/hs/pubs/ergonomics/is_ergonomics.php
http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/ecfa/action/primary/lower_back.aspx