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What is workplace injury costing you?

Musculoskeletal (MSK) injury — back, neck, shoulder and upper-limb issues — is the most common category of work-related ill health in Europe. Use your own workforce numbers below to estimate what it costs your organisation each year.

Your workforce

Used to estimate daily wage cost of absence.

5%

MSK (back, neck, shoulder, upper-limb) issues are the most common category of work-related ill health (EU-OSHA). Set to your own experience.

×2

Hidden costs — cover, recruitment, admin, lost productivity. The HSE accident-iceberg model puts these at 1×–3× direct cost. Default 2× (conservative).

Estimated annual cost

Estimated MSK-related cost to your organisation per year

€27,273

Employees affected per year5.0
Direct cost (absence)€9,091
Indirect cost (hidden)€18,182

This is an order-of-magnitude estimate from your own inputs — not a quote. A single ergonomic assessment or a manual handling training programme typically costs a fraction of the figure above.

Get an ergonomic assessment quote

How the estimate is calculated

The calculator multiplies your own inputs — no figures are invented. The calculation is:

  • Daily wage cost = average annual salary ÷ 220 working days (a standard Irish working-year estimate after leave and public holidays).
  • Affected employees = workforce × the percentage you set.
  • Direct cost = affected employees × absence days × daily wage cost.
  • Indirect (hidden) cost= direct cost × the ratio you set. The HSE “accident iceberg” model puts hidden costs — cover, recruitment, admin, lost productivity — at roughly 1× to 3× the direct cost. We default to a conservative 2×.

The result is an order-of-magnitude estimate to support a business case — not a precise figure and not a quote. The point it usually makes: the cost of prevention (an ergonomic assessment or a manual handling programme) is a small fraction of the cost of the injuries it prevents.

Context on MSK prevalence: the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) reports musculoskeletal disorders as the most common work-related health problem in the EU.

Member of Irish Ergonomics Society·HSE Framework Provider·QQI Level 6 Trainers·Trusted since 1995

Turn the number into a plan

A targeted ergonomic assessment or manual handling programme is the most direct way to bring that figure down. Tell us about your workforce and we'll come back within 4 working hours.