Before you shovel that snow, pick up the kids or even meet with your bowling team, think about this: most safety and health professionals believe that the injuries, long-term or short, you could receive from activities like these may affect your job performance, but very few companies do anything to prevent it.
“Businesses have a vested interest in the safety and health of their employees at work and away from work,” said Alan McMillan, President of the National Safety Council (NSC), in a press statement regarding the organization’s recent survey of the on-the-job impact of off-the-job injuries. “Employers pay many of the costs associated with medical care, insurance and lost productivity resulting from injuries suffered by employees and their families. Business leaders must recognize that profitability and competitiveness are being affected by these costs.”
Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs), for example, are soft-tissue injuries that occur over a period of time due to repeated trauma or exposure to a specific body part and can be particularly affected by off-work activities. Muscles and joints are stressed, tendons are inflamed, nerves pinched or the flow of blood is restricted. For the ergonomist, pinpointing the exact cause of a CTD can be difficult.
In June, 2003, The Ergonomics Report