A literature review on reports, policies and recommendations to manage musculoskeletal conditions at workplace: Are they working?

Musculoskeletal conditions cause disability and distress, increase the healthcare costly demands and reduce productivity due to sick loss days and impaired work performance. The majority of European countries reported that musculoskeletal diseases are the most prevalent of all occupational diseases with Italy, Germany, Austria and the United Kingdom (UK) to reach over 82%.

The Labour force survey in 2015, demonstrated that 44% of the employees taking sick leave suffered from musculoskeletal pain. Recently, the Trade Union Congress report depicted that 83.6% employees were forced to stop working before the State Pension Age due to musculoskeletal disorders. Prevention and management of work disability and sick leave is high on the agenda of the UK Government. During the last decade, numerous organisations and professional bodies have published reports with recommendations that target the health and well-being of workers.

This literature review explored evaluated and synthesised the current reports, policies and recommendations that aim to promote health and safety at the workplace and tackle occupational musculoskeletal health issues in the UK.