| RSI costs American employers between $13 and $20 billion annually in workers' compensation claims and
more than $100 billion in lost work, reduced productivity and rehabilitation time. In less than 30 years,
the number of repetitive stress injuries has grown from 23,800 to 332,000 cases per year -- a fourteen-
fold increase. And the number keeps growing.
It may come as a surprise but the leading cause of workplace injuries sits right in front of you: your
computer keyboard and mouse. This fact, however, does not surprise workers' compensation
providers. Insurers report that 20% to 30% of all new workers' compensation claims are related to
repetitive stress, mostly in the form of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, the number one work-related disability
in America.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a painfully debilitating injury that affects 7 out of every 100 workers. The
average claim costs more than $14,000 and claims for surgery can easily cost more than $30,000 each,
not to mention the physical risks and side effects involved. Add in an average of 20 days of lost work
per claim, the cost of hiring replacement workers, and the inconvenience of repeatedly swapping workers,
many of which are crucial members of one or more project groups, and the extent of the damage to
productivity RSI causes becomes clear. |
