Work-related risk factors and the prevalence of low back pain among low wage workers: results from a cross-sectional study

Background Low back pain, the most commonly reported musculoskeletal problem, is a major burden on individuals, health systems and social care systems with the indirect cost being predominant. It results in disability, poor service, low quality of life and sickness absences in working places. The problem of low back pain and its risk factors among hotel housekeepers are not well known in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study was aimed to investigate the prevalence and identify determinants of low back pain among hotel industries’ housekeepers in Gondar town, Ethiopia. Methods Institutional based cross-sectional study was conducted from March to May 2017. A systematic random sampling technique was applied to select 422 study participants, and the data was collected by a standardized Nordic questionnaire for the analysis of musculoskeletal symptoms. Bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were performed using SPSS version 20. The significance level was obtained at 95% CI and p-value ≤ 0.05. Results The prevalence of low back pain among hotel housekeepers in Gondar town was 58.1% (95% CI: 53.6, 62.8%). Being temporary employee (AOR: 3.22), type of job which requires reaching/overstretching (AOR: 2.93), engaging in a job that requires repetitive bending (AOR: 1.97), making > 30 beds per day (AOR: 3.19) signified the significant risk factors for low back pain. However, hotel housekeepers who were satisfied in their current job were less impacted by low back pain (AOR: 0.49). Conclusion A high proportion of hotel housekeepers in this study reported they had low back pain. Employment pattern, rest break taken, reaching/overstretching, repetitive bending, job satisfaction, training related to health and safety and numbers of beds making were among the factors associated with low back pain. Hence, ergonomic measures focusing on correcting the arrangement of work station, rest breaks and changing some equipment are potentially important targets to reduce the problem.