The TUC wants to see women workers use their own experiences to demand better standards of health and safety from their employers. Women's jobs can be just as back-breaking as men's, and this report demonstrates that we have only just begun to address this huge health problem. The TUC is proud to be working with BackCare, the new name for the National Back Pain Association, in promoting a month of campaigning in October 1999. We want to raise the profile of women's back strain at work, so that we can prevent it. Back pain is not generally gender specific, but there are particular jobs which women predominantly do which leave them over-exposed to the risks of back strain.
Women generally suffer back pain for longer than men, who tend to suffer from short, sharp attacks.
Just over a quarter of a million women suffer work-related back strain every year, according to the Health and Safety Executive. Altogether, this represents nearly one in eight of the female labour force, or about one and a half million women workers. In the younger and older age groups, women are more likely to suffer back strain than men, whereas among the middle-aged, men are far more likely to suffer. The effects, of course, are likely to be cumulative, so although exposure tails off, suffering continues to grow as workers age. However, a slightly different picture emerges in terms of age when looking at the proportions of those engaged in heavy lifting or moving who do so while twisting or stooping.