Workers across the work force have to worry about injuries on the job. Some jobs have a higher risk for injury than others.
But some types of injuries can affect all workers equally. This includes repetitive stress injuries.
Defining an RSI
Cleveland Clinic discusses repetitive strain or stress injuries, also called RSIs. These injuries form due to the repetitive use of the same part of the body over and over again, over time.
RSIs typically form over weeks or months, but they can form over years, too. In some cases, they can even form over a few hours, depending on the type of action or the intensity of that action.
Why is it an issue?
These injuries pose a major problem because of the healing time it takes to recover. During the recovery process, a person cannot do the action that caused the RSI. For most people, this action is critical for their job.
Thus, a person often cannot work during the healing process. The unfortunate news? This process can take weeks or even months. Sometimes, it may even require surgery, which has an even longer recovery period.
A person may end up without work for a period of time, and they will likely not have the paid leave necessary to cover the entire recovery process.
For this reason, people sometimes return to their job before they should. This only compounds the injury and worsens it, leading to even longer healing times and creating a vicious cycle.
This is why financial compensation is so necessary for many workers, and why they pursue it.
