THE PROBLEM OF LEGITIMACY IN THE EXPERIENCE OF WORK-RELATED BACK INJURY

In an ethnographic study of work-related back injury, the problem of l egitimacy was a central feature of workers' experiences. Injured worke rs encountered suspicion in their workplaces regarding the validity of their claims to back injury and their need for compensable time off w ork. The experience was associated, in most instances, with damaged re lations at work and jeopardized job security. Underpinning workers' ex perience were the nature of medical knowledge on back injuries and the design of the workers' compensation system. The relationship of this analysis to the issues of malingering and moral evaluation in the work place is examined, as is the possibility that the problem of legitimac y contributes to chronic disability from work-related back injury.