Back injuries are a common reason employees miss work days, not only in the U.S. but also across the world. Despite this, many people still underestimate the impact of such an injury.
In reality, one ill-timed injury to the back can result in the victim permanently losing their ability to work in their chosen field.
Healing from a back injury
Cleveland Clinic discusses the impact of back injuries at work. These can happen for many reasons, ranging from falls to repetitive strain. A heavy object, a vehicle or other machinery can also hit a worker and cause injury to the back.
The trickiest part about healing from a back injury is that the victim has to remain relatively still through the inflammation stage. This stage can take some time to move through. Even for less severe cases, inflammation can last days.
A few days of unpaid time off can greatly impact a person’s paycheck. Many workers do not have enough sick leave or paid vacation time to properly heal after they hurt their back.
A cycle of financial loss
The challenges of healing from a back injury can result in an employee returning to work too soon, thus aggravating the wound. Eventually, a person could do so much damage to their back that it simply will not heal on its own and requires surgery.
Some back injuries also have a high enough severity from the start that they can render a person incapable of doing their old job, especially if it involves high mobility or use of the back. This is why anyone who suffers from a back injury could potentially risk losing their job.
