Safety seminar to address 'staggering' statistics

A free health and safety event is being held in Hull in an effort to bring down the number of people who suffer from work-related back problems.

Statistics suggest that at any one time, more than 11 million people in the UK suffer from musculoskeletal disorders, leading to more than ten million lost working days last year alone.

Event organiser Diane Etchell said it is "staggering" that the average person has an 80 per cent chance of developing back pain at some point throughout their life.

"Last year's campaign aimed to reduce cases of back pain caused or made worse by work by focusing on prevention of manual handling and upper limb disorder-related injuries in the workplace," she explained.

Ms Etchell went on to outline this year's aim to promote the importance of managing back pain more generally through "good work practices".

The Better Backs event, taking place next Tuesday (February 26th), is intended for employers, managers, workers and safety representatives.

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