Musculoskeletal (MSK) health is key to maintaining good function of our physical bodies. From 2025, more than 500,000 workers in Britain live with an MSK condition that requires support through their working day. In fact, workplace musculoskeletal support is one of the most important factors when it comes to aiding recovery or managing chronic pain.
In 2025, MSK conditions resulted in over 27 million lost working days. This relationship between musculoskeletal health and absenteeism shows how important it is to support your employees’ physical health and wellbeing in the workplace.
Individual outcomes: investing in ways to help support employees with their MSK health can help them return to work faster and create a more positive workplace culture. Here are five ways that you can implement in your workplace to provide musculoskeletal support to your team members
Promote good posture to prevent injuries from occurring
Maintaining good posture and form during work creates positive musculoskeletal habits and supports overall health and wellbeing in the workplace. A strategy for managing musculoskeletal disorders should be outlined in general risk assessments as well as assessments for specific activities to reduce the risk of injury or strain.
Some risk areas outlined by the HSE include:
- Manual handling
- Repetitive work and awkward positions
- Health risks associated with display screen equipment
- Exposure to vibration
Following from this, employees should know how to report injuries and work-related health issues to their management or health and safety team. This will help identify any problems that may need further investigation and ensure that employees are putting health and safety training into practice and not slipping into what could be damaging posture or form.
Further reading: Musculoskeletal health at work | Westfield Health
Help employees claim back costs with a health cash plan
In October 2025, research found that 29% of people in England are not confident about their ability to access NHS treatment when they need it. This makes providing workplace support for MSK conditions more valuable than ever.
By investing in health cash plans, your business allows your people to claim money back towards the cost of essential healthcare.
Some of the included therapy treatments can be used to treat MSK conditions. The treatment options included in health cash plans can include:
- Physiotherapy
- Acupuncture
- Chiropractic
- Osteopathy
- Homeopathy treatment
Treatments such as physiotherapy can assist with pain management, rehabilitation, prevention and improving physical function. With help from a health cash plan, employees can get treatment fast and claim back the cost, up to set limits, when you are referred to a registered therapist through a GP or consultant.
Further reading: Common questions about physiotherapy | Westfield Health
Mental health first aid at work
Physical health and mental health are intrinsically linked. The pain and loss of mobility associated with MSK conditions can be tiring and have a negative effect on our mood and mental health.
Research in 2026 found that adults with long-term MSK conditions are 1.5 times more likely to report experiencing a mental health condition. By creating support for mental health at work, businesses can provide support for these often-overlooked symptoms of MSK conditions. Our own mental health puzzle research found that employees took an average of 5.7 days off due to mental health in 2024, with almost half of all surveyed workers taking at least one day off due to mental health in the year.
Investing in mental health first aid training will equip your people with the skills to spot the early signs of mental health issues arising in the workplace, start supportive conversations and guide people to seeking the appropriate professional help.
Tailored employee assistance programmes (EAPs)
Employee assistance programs (EAPs) are one of the most popular employee benefit schemes, but they must be suitable for your workforce and promoted regularly to make sure people are aware of the support on offer.
EAPs could include various benefits that help businesses provide workplace support for MSK conditions:
- 24/7 DoctorLine: Employees can arrange a call back or video consultation from a practising UK GP or clinical pharmacist, to assist them if they’re struggling to access their regular GP.
- Gym discounts for nearby gyms and health centres: Employees can use discounts for health spaces to help build muscle, stay active and prevent MSK conditions.
- Advice and structured counselling sessions: As part of the 24-Hour Advice and Information Line, employees can access support on various topics, including mental health, which could include up to six sessions of structured counselling in 12 months.
Active spaces
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that adults engage in 150 minutes of vigorous exercise per week to gain health benefits and prevent disease. Regular physical activity reduces the risk of developing long-term MSK conditions.
Having a dedicated active space area in your workplace is ideal to encourage employees to be physically active and help manage existing conditions.
A flexible fitness room or space within the office can have a huge impact on physical wellbeing and be useful for employees who have been prescribed exercises to strengthen muscles relating to their MSK health. These spaces can be used for anything from lunchtime fitness classes to standing meetings, giving employees the opportunity to be more active throughout the day.