Can I get help with back pain caused by work?

You should not have to choose between your back and your wages. If lifting residents, shifting deliveries or sitting at a screen makes your pain worse, your employer must assess the risks and take action. You do not have to wait for a diagnosis or an injury. Longer-term back problems may also give you a right to reasonable adjustments, paid for by your employer.

How to get help today

1. Describe the task that hurts. Record what you lift, push or reach for, how often, and when symptoms start. Ask your manager for a risk assessment. Agency staff should tell both the agency and placement manager.
2. Ask for an immediate change. A working hoist, trolley, suitable seat or rotation away from heavy lifting may help while you wait. Explain the risk to you. Request reasonable adjustments if your condition may be a disability.
3. Get medical advice and keep records. Ask about restrictions, a fit note and an occupational health referral. Keep requests, replies, rotas and medical evidence somewhere accessible if you leave. Do not copy confidential information about patients or colleagues.
4. Get backup. Ask your union or safety rep. Usdaw organises retail, UNISON care and NHS support, Unite and GMB warehouses and factories, and IWGB gig workers and outsourced cleaners. Check support for an existing problem before joining. Acas, Citizens Advice and law centres also offer advice.
5. Escalate promptly. Ask for a written response, raise a grievance if needed and report unresolved risks. Get advice about discrimination or punishment. A grievance does not stop the tribunal clock.

What your employer must do to protect your back

You do not have to be disabled to be entitled to safe work. Agency staff and contractors also benefit from duties to protect people affected by a business’s work.

Under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, employers must protect employees’ health and safety so far as reasonably practicable. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require a suitable and sufficient risk assessment. Employers with five or more employees must record its significant findings.

Lifting, pushing and repetitive work

The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 require employers to avoid hazardous manual handling so far as reasonably practicable. They must assess handling that cannot be avoided and reduce the risk to the lowest level reasonably practicable. Handling includes lifting boxes, pushing roll cages, pulling trolleys and moving people.

Employers must indicate load weights, giving precise weights and any off-centre heaviest side where reasonably practicable. They must review assessments that may no longer be valid or where handling changes significantly. Report changes in your condition too.

The assessment should consider the task, load, space, equipment, your capacity and work rate. A housekeeper bending over beds or a kitchen porter moving stockpots needs more than “lift properly”. HSE says training alone cannot fix badly designed tasks or missing lifting aids. Use the safe systems provided and report faults.

Seats, screens and workstation layout

The Display Screen Equipment Regulations 1992 cover people who habitually use screens as a significant part of normal work, including at home. Employers must assess workstations, reduce risks, plan breaks or changes of activity and provide training. Covered users can request a free eye test. Employers must pay for special glasses needed for screen work if normal glasses do not meet that need.

Seats matter beyond offices. The Workplace Regulations 1992 require suitable workstations and a suitable seat where work, or a substantial part of it, can be done sitting. At a till or security desk, consider repeated reaching and room to move as well as the chair.

Does back pain count as a disability?

It can. In Great Britain, the Equality Act 2010 test is a physical or mental impairment with a substantial, long-term adverse effect on normal day-to-day activities. What matters is how the condition affects what you can do.

Long-term means the effect has lasted, or is likely to last, at least 12 months, or is likely to last for the rest of your life. Recurring substantial effects can count as continuing. You need not wait a year if the likely duration already meets the test. Generally, assess the effect without treatment.

Describe difficulties dressing, walking, sleeping or carrying shopping. Participation in working life also counts. No particular scan result or diagnostic label is required, and work need not have caused the condition. Keeping going through pain does not rule out disability.

The adjustment duty can arise when a practice, physical feature or lack of an auxiliary aid puts you at a substantial disadvantage compared with a non-disabled person. Your employer must know, or reasonably be expected to know, about the disability and likely disadvantage. Explain the effects and provide relevant evidence.

Possible adjustments include lifting aids, lighter duties, a changed pick rate, task rotation, suitable seating, altered hours or a phased return. Removing twisting at a till may matter more than a desk. The right is to reasonable steps to address the disadvantage, not automatically your preferred arrangement. You cannot be charged for a required adjustment.

Failing to make a required reasonable adjustment is disability discrimination. Dismissal or other unfavourable treatment because of disability-related absence can also be discrimination unless legally justified. Tribunal compensation for disability discrimination has no statutory cap and can include injury to feelings. An award is not automatic.

Is there a maximum weight I can be asked to lift?

No. There is no legal maximum lifting weight. “It is under 20 kg” does not establish that a lift is safe.

HSE’s INDG143 guidance uses weight filters to identify tasks needing closer assessment. Its highest figures, 25 kg for men and 16 kg for women, apply close to the body between knuckle and elbow height under specified conditions. Values are lower with arms extended or at other heights. They are population-based screening figures, not your personal lifting allowance.

A task needs closer assessment if it falls outside the filter conditions, involves twisting or team handling, or puts you at particular risk because of an injury or health condition. Even a light load can be a problem when repeated throughout a shift.

Can I refuse a task that hurts? Will I be sacked?

There is no blanket right to refuse every painful task. Serious and imminent danger is different from an ordinary disagreement about duties. Describe the danger, tell your manager and seek a safe alternative. Do not risk injury to avoid being called difficult.

In Great Britain, section 44 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 protects workers, including employees, from detriment for leaving or refusing to return to a dangerous workplace in specified circumstances of reasonably believed serious and imminent danger. It also covers appropriate protective steps in such danger, with no service requirement.

Employees are also protected for reasonably reporting harmful conditions where there is no safety representative or committee, or raising the matter through them is not reasonably practicable. Section 100 protects employees against automatically unfair dismissal for specified safety reasons, without qualifying service. Non-employee workers cannot use that dismissal route.

You can still face capability or absence proceedings. Before dismissal, employers should obtain relevant medical evidence, consult you and consider adjustments and alternative work. Disability discrimination is separate from ordinary unfair dismissal. Get advice before a meeting about discipline while off sick.

What pay do I get while off with back pain?

For eligible employees, including qualifying agency staff, Statutory Sick Pay is payable from the first full qualifying day of sickness under the rules in force since 6 April 2026. The three waiting days and lower earnings limit have gone. A qualifying day is normally a day you would work, not every calendar day.

From 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027, the weekly rate is the lower of £123.25 or 80% of average weekly earnings, for up to 28 weeks. Part-weeks are calculated using qualifying days. Your contract may provide more generous sick pay. Follow the sickness-reporting procedure and check our Statutory Sick Pay guide if payroll refuses payment.

If SSP will run out or you do not qualify, ask your employer for form SSP1 and check Universal Credit or New Style Employment and Support Allowance. Those benefits have their own eligibility rules. SSP1 does not guarantee a payment.

Equipment support and compensation

Access to Work can fund additional specialist equipment, support workers or disability-related travel costs in Great Britain. Grants awarded or reviewed between 1 April 2026 and 31 March 2027 have an annual cap of £69,260. It does not fund adjustments your employer must legally make. A grant application is no substitute for that duty.

Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit may cover disablement caused by a work accident or prescribed disease. Ordinary chronic back pain is generally not a prescribed disease, but the separate accident route may apply. Its 2026/27 maximum is £233.90 a week for assessed 100% disablement, not an automatic payment for back pain.

If employer negligence caused or worsened your injury, ask your union’s legal service or a personal-injury solicitor about a civil claim. The usual limit is three years; get advice on its start date and exceptions. It is separate from a tribunal claim. Generally compulsory employers’ liability insurance does not establish fault or guarantee compensation.

Agency, gig and zero-hours work: are you covered?

Labels in your contract do not settle your rights. Prevention, disability protection and sick pay use different legal tests. A zero-hours contract does not, by itself, remove those rights.

For an agency placement, send requests to both the agency and the organisation controlling the task. Ask who will assess the work and provide the equipment. If a firm calls you self-employed but controls your shifts and requires you to do the work personally, get employment-status advice. See also our guides to agency rights and zero-hours contracts.

Working from home with back or neck pain

Covered screen users need a home-workstation assessment, including when working a hybrid pattern.

Describe symptoms and, if you are comfortable, share photos of your setup. Possible changes include a separate keyboard and mouse, repositioned monitor, adjustable chair with lower-back support and a footrest. Assess equipment, posture, space and work pattern. No legally prescribed chair angle makes prolonged laptop work safe.

Employees can make a day-one flexible working request for changed hours or location, but homeworking is not guaranteed. An employer must consider any reasonable-adjustment duty separately. See home and hybrid safety rights.

Reporting and records

Report accidents and worsening symptoms promptly. Record the task, load, time and witnesses. Ask for an accident-book entry where appropriate and keep your own account. Gradual problems still need reporting internally.

Under Great Britain’s RIDDOR rules, an accident causing more than seven consecutive days of inability to do normal work is reportable. Exclude the accident day but count rest days. Specified injuries may be reportable without that wait. Gradual-onset back pain is not a reportable occupational disease; specified hand and arm conditions have separate rules.

Ask your union safety rep to pursue unresolved risks. In Great Britain, HSE or the relevant local authority enforces safety, depending on the workplace. In Northern Ireland, contact HSENI. Reporting does not start a compensation claim or stop tribunal time. See our guides to injury records and HSE enforcement.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland uses the same Equality Act and safety protections as England and Wales. Northern Ireland has parallel safety rules, enforced through HSENI and its own system. The Great Britain statutory references above are not Northern Ireland provisions.

In Northern Ireland, the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 provides a similar adjustment framework. Employment disability claims go to an Industrial Tribunal. Contact the Labour Relations Agency, not Acas, about early conciliation. The usual disability-claim limit remains three months minus one day.

April 2026 SSP changes apply in Northern Ireland too, but it has a separate Access to Work service. Civil claims need jurisdiction-specific advice.

What is still to come

Questions people ask

Can I be sacked for back-pain absence?

Dismissal can be lawful, but disability-related absence raises adjustment and discrimination issues, and a fair capability process matters. Ask for medical evidence, consultation and consideration of alternatives. Get advice before resigning or agreeing to leave. See dismissal because you are ill.

Do I get breaks to ease my back?

The usual adult-worker entitlement is a 20-minute uninterrupted rest break if the working day exceeds six hours, subject to working-time exceptions. Screen users also need planned breaks or changes of activity. A disability adjustment may require more frequent movement or rest. See rest-break rights.

What if occupational health is not available?

Tell your manager what tasks you struggle with and provide relevant evidence from your treating professional. Ask how the employer will assess the risk and consider adjustments without an occupational health service. Lack of that service does not remove their duties. Our occupational health guide explains the process.

Who can help if my employer cuts my shifts after I complain?

Keep the complaint, old and new rotas, and any messages explaining the change. Ask your union, Acas or a legal adviser whether safety-detriment, discrimination or other protections apply. The reason for the cut and your employment status matter. Do not wait for a grievance outcome before checking the deadline.

Sources

1. Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, section 2, legislation.gov.uk.
2. Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulation 3, legislation.gov.uk.
3. Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992, regulation 4, legislation.gov.uk.
4. Manual handling at work, INDG143, HSE, January 2020.
5. Working safely with display screen equipment and DSE regulations guidance, L26, HSE.
6. Workplace Regulations 1992, regulation 11, legislation.gov.uk.
7. Equality Act 2010, Schedule 1, section 20, section 21, section 15 and Schedule 8, paragraph 20, legislation.gov.uk.
8. Employment Rights Act 1996, section 44 and section 100, legislation.gov.uk.
9. Employment tribunal time limits, Acas, updated 1 October 2026.
10. Work out Statutory Sick Pay manually and SSP eligibility and form SSP1, GOV.UK.
11. National Minimum Wage rates, GOV.UK.
12. Musculoskeletal disorders statistics 2025, HSE. First reality check, 2024/25 estimates.
13. Women more than twice as likely as men to miss out on SSP, TUC. Second reality check, historical exclusions.
14. Access to Work factsheet, DWP, updated 5 May 2026.
15. Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit rates and technical guidance, DWP.
16. Fit note guidance, GOV.UK.
17. The right to request flexible working, Acas.
18. Types of reportable incidents, HSE.
19. Working Time Regulations 1998, regulation 12, legislation.gov.uk.
20. Manual handling in Northern Ireland, HSENI; Disability Discrimination Act 1995, legislation.gov.uk; SSP changes 2026, Labour Relations Agency.
21. Limitation Act 1980, section 11, and Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969. Civil injury time limits and insurance, with separate limitation law in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
22. Employment Rights Act 2025 and implementation factsheets, legislation.gov.uk and GOV.UK. Scheduled unfair-dismissal reform.