AbstractObjectiveTo investigate the one‐year prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and associated risk factors in a large sample of Chinese workers in various industrial settings.MethodsA total of 5,338 (3,632 males and 1,706 females) workers from 13 companies participated in this study. Musculoskeletal symptoms in different body regions in the previous year and their risk factors were assessed by a self‐reported questionnaire. Logistic regression analyses were performed to estimate the individual, work‐related physical and psychosocial risk factors for the musculoskeletal symptoms.ResultsThe most commonly affected body regions among the workers were lower back (59.7%), neck (48.6%), shoulders (38.8%), and wrists (33.5%). Female workers had greater prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms in the neck, shoulders, and wrists than male workers. Results of multivariate analyses indicated that individual, work‐related physical and psychosocial factors were associated with the musculoskeletal symptoms.ConclusionThe results suggest that interventions aimed at reducing musculoskeletal symptoms in the Chinese working population should take into account multiple risk areas including individual, physical job characteristics and work‐related psychosocial factors. Am. J. Ind. Med. 55:281–293, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.