Transcript European Agency on Safety and Health

Increasing workers wellbeing
through management of
psychosocial risks at work and
workplace health promotion
Strasbourg, 15 May 2012
Dr Malgorzata Milczarek
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work
EU-OSHA
 The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work
was established in 1996 in Bilbao to help improve
working conditions in the European Union
 EU-OSHA:

identifies emerging risks (research)

consolidates knowledge (reports)

stimulates debate (seminars)

collects and disseminates
good practice information

organises raising-awareness
campaigns

develops and disseminates
practical tools
FOCAL
POINTS
EU Focal Points
Candidate & Potential
Candidate Countries
EEA/EFTA
Focal Points
Management of psychosocial risks
Overview
 Prevalence and consequences of psychosocial risks at work
 Managing psychosocial risks, risk assessment and mental health
promotion
 EU-OSHA projects and publications related to psychosocial risks
(OiRA, HWC 12-15)
 Case study: Top on Job
Management of psychosocial risks
 Work-related stress is one of the biggest
health and safety challenges that we face in
Europe.
 Stress is the second most reported work-related
health problem. EU Labour Force Survey (2007):


28% of workers reported that work negatively
affects their mental well-being
14% of workers who reported work-related health
problems, experienced stress, depresion,
or anxiety as the main problem
 The number of people suffering from
stress-related conditions caused or
made worse by work is likely to increase
Management of psychosocial risks
 Stress: definition and causes
 People experience stress when they perceive
that there is an imbalance between the
demands made of them and the resources
they have available to cope with those
demands.
 Although the experience of stress is
psychological, stress also affects people’s
physical health.
Management of psychosocial risks
 Symptoms of work-related stress
 Individual:
o
o
o
o
Emotional: irritability, anxiety, sleep problems,
depression, hypochondria, alienation, burnout,
relationship problems
Cognitive: difficulty in concentrating,
remembering, learning new things, making
decisions
Behavioural: abuse of drugs, alcohol, and
tobacco
Physiological: back problems, weakened
immunity, peptic ulcers, heart problems,
hypertension.
Management of psychosocial risks
 Symptoms of work-related stress
 Organisational:
o absenteeism, high staff turnover, poor
time-keeping, disciplinary problems,
harassment, reduced productivity,
accidents, errors, and increased costs
from compensation or health care.
Management of psychosocial risks
 European Survey of Enterprises on New &
Emerging Risks – Psychosocial Risks (ESENER)

ESENER Survey asks managers and workers' representatives
about how health and safety risks are managed at their
workplace, with a particular focus on the work-related stress,
violence and harassment.
 Computer-assisted telephone interviews (“CATI”)
 2 questionnaires
 31 countries: 36,000 interviews (2009)
 41 national versions of each questionnaire
 “Enterprises” = both public and private sectors
http://esener.eu
How are psychosocial risks being managed?
 Main concerns and causes

Level of concern about stress, violence and
bullying or harassment; what are the principal
risk factors (e.g. time pressure, poor
communication, job insecurity, etc.)?
 Measures taken

Ad-hoc or ‘reactive’ measures (e.g. training,
change to work organisation, work area
redesign, confidential support, changes to
working time, conflict resolution)
 Procedures in place

More formal or system based than ‘measures’,
e.g. procedures to deal with stress, with
violence or with bullying or harassment
Level of concern about various health and safety
issues
% establishments
10 0
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
Major concern
Some concern
No concern
Bullying or
harassment
Violence or
threat of
violence
Noise and
vibration
Dangerous
substances
WR Stress
MSDs
Accidents
0
DK/ NA
(ESENER, 2009)
Concern about work-related stress, harassment, or
violence (ESENER, 2009)
% establishments
Health and social w ork
Education
Public administration and defence; compulsory social
security
Real estate, renting and business activities
Financial intermediation
Other community, social and personal service activities
Mining and quarrying
Transport, storage and communication
EU-27
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles,
motorcycles and personal and household goods
Hotels and restaurants
Construction
Electricity, gas and w ater supply
Manufacturing
0
Bullying or harassment
10
20
30
Violence or threat of violence
40
50
60
70
80
Work-related stress
90 100
(ESENER, 2009)
Prevalence of procedures to deal with work-related
stress, harassment, or violence
% establishments, EU27
H e a lt h a nd s o c ia l wo rk
E duc a t io n
F ina nc ia l int e rm e dia t io n
H o t e ls a nd re s t a ura nt s
O t he r c o m m unit y, s o c ia l a nd pe rs o na l
s e rv ic e a c t iv it ie s
R e a l e s t a t e , re nt ing a nd bus ine s s a c t iv it ie s
P ublic a dm inis t ra t io n a nd de f e nc e ;
c o m puls o ry s o c ia l s e c urit y
Who le s a le a nd re t a il t ra de ; re pa ir o f m o t o r
v e hic le s , m o t o rc yc le s a nd pe rs o na l a nd
ho us e ho ld go o ds
T ra ns po rt , s t o ra ge a nd c o m m unic a t io n
M ining a nd qua rrying a nd E le c t ric it y, ga s
a nd wa t e r s upply
C o ns t ruc t io n
M a nuf a c t uring
0%
(ESENER, 2009)
10%
20%
Bullying or harassment
30%
40%
Work-related violence
50%
60%
70%
Work-related stress
80%
90%
100%
Concern about various psychosocial risk factors
% establishments
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Time pressure
Having to deal
Poor
w ith difficul
communication
customers,
betw een
patients, pupils, management
etc
and employees
Job insecurity
Poor cooperation
amongst
colleagues
Long or
irregular
w orking hours
Problems in
supervisor employee
relationships
Lack of
employee
control in
organising their
w ork
An unclear
human
resources
policy
Discimination for example due
to gender, age
or ethnicity
(ESENER, 2009)
Main difficulties in dealing with health and safety and
with psychosocial risks
% establishments, EU-27
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Lack of
resources such
as time, staff or
money
Lack of
aw areness
Lack of
expertise
Health and safety
Culture w ithin
the
establishment
Sensitivity of the Lack of technical
issue
support or
guidance
Psychosocial risks
(ESENER, 2009)
Managing psychosocial risks
 Employers have an obligation to manage
work-related stress, through the Framework
Directive 89/391/EEC.
 Framework agreement on work-related
stress (2004)
 Framework agreement on harassment and
violence at work (2007)


increasing the awareness and understanding of employers, workers
and their representatives of work-related stress, workplace
harassment and violence,
providing employers, workers and their representatives at all levels
with an action-oriented framework to identify, prevent and manage
problems of work-related stress, harassment and violence at work.
Managing psychosocial risks
 The key to manage psychosocial risks and
prevent work-related stress lies with the
organisation and management of work.
 Risk assessment for psychosocial risks
involves the same basic principles and
processes as for other workplace hazards
 Including workers and their representatives
in the process is crucial to success.
Risk Assessment – the 5 steps
Identify the
hazards
and those
at risk
Evaluate and
prioritise the risk
(who may be harmed
and how)
Monitor
and
review the
situation
Decide on
preventive
actions
Take
action!
 Consult the workers – both on the hazards and
risks and on the proposed solutions
Managing psychosocial risks
 Psychosocial risks
 Control: Low participation in decision making, lack of
control over work methods
 Organisational culture & function: Poor
communication, lack of definition of, organisational
objectives
 Interpersonal relationships at work: conflicts, lack of
social support
 Role in the organisation: role ambiguity, role conflict
 Career development: career stagnation and
uncertainty, job insecurity
 Home-work interface: conflicting demands of work and
home
Managing psychosocial risks
 Psychosocial risks
 Job content: lack of variety, under use of skills, dealing
with difficult clients, patients, students
 Workload & work pace: work overload or under load,
machine pacing, time pressure
 Work schedule: shift working, night shifts, inflexible
work schedules, unpredictable hours, long or unsociable
hours
 Environment & equipment: inadequate equipment
availability, suitability or maintenance, lack of space, poor
lighting, excessive noise
 Organisational and individual symptoms of
stress
Managing psychosocial risks
 OiRA (Online interactive Risk Assessment)
Psychosocial modul
 The OiRA psychosocial module will be addressed to the
partners/intermediaries developing sectoral OiRA tools
 Simple, concrete, practical tool for SME
 Risk assessment and examples of practical solutions
http://www.oiraproject.eu/
Workplace Health Promotion
Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) is the combined efforts
of employers, employees, and society to improve the health
and wellbeing of people at work*
 WHP supports and does not replace workplace risk
management
 Employers are not responsible for worker’s lifestyle
decisions, but can encourage healthy behaviours
 Workers can not be forced to change behaviours, but can be
encouraged and supported to make healthy choices
 Workers’ participation throughout the process is essential
 Comprehensive interventions dealing with both
organisational and individual level factors are required
*ENWHP, Luxembourg Declaration on Workplace Health Promotion in the EU, 2007
Workplace Health Promotion
Project on mental health promotion
 Part of the EU-OSHA long-term project on workplace health promotion
(2008-20013) raising awareness and providing information materials
for employers, workers and their representatives
 An expert group consisting of EU Member States’ experts,
representatives from the Commission, WHO, ILO and the European
Network for Workplace Health Promotion (ENWHP) was established
Products
 EU link collection
 E-Facts (Mental health promotion, Tobacco: health effects and creating a
smoke-free working environment, Work-life balance)
 Reports (Mental health promotion in the workplace
– A good practice report (2011))
 Cartoons
Case study – prevention of alcohol and drugs
“TOP ON JOB!”
Introduction
 Alcohol abuse and other addictions –not openly discussed
 Before addiction occur
Aims: to prevent addiction in a company
 Developing competences among young workers in alcohol and drug consumption
 Personality building (e.g. health awareness, communication skills, conflict
handling, sense of responsibility)
Implementation in the enterprises: “Peer-education”
 Tutor training: Fri-Sat, 4 modules, 60hr + courses on coaching and project
monitoring. Aims: knowledge on alcohol addiction and prevention, enhancing selfawareness and social skills
 Contact point – advice and support
 Supportive networks inside and outside of the company
Results
 Tutors – competent coaches, more responsible use of alcohol
Organisations involved: MAN Diesel SE, BS Miehle, BKK L Bayern.
More information: http://osha.europa.eu/en/topics/whp “case studies”
24
EU-OSHA European Campaigns
 Raising-awareness Campaign 2014 – 2015
“Practical solutions for psychosocial risks”
 Work-related stress, violence, and harassment at work can
be successfully managed
 Promoting tools and methods that have been developed
over the last decade to manage work-related stress,
violence and harassment
 Disseminating good practice examples (at both national &
EU level), including tools for workers’ representatives and
line managers
EU-OSHA resources
 SEP Stress
http://osha.europa.eu/en/topics/stress
 SEP WHP
http://osha.europa.eu/en/topics/whp

Factsheets (e.g. Work-related stress; Practical advice for workers on

E-facts 31 (e.g. Managing psychosocial risks with cleaning workers;

Reports (e.g. How to Tackle Psychosocial Issues and Reduce Work-related

ESENER: mapping tool (www.esener.eu), printed publications
tackling work-related stress and its causes; Prevention of violence to staff in
the education sector)
Prevention of work-related stress in the education sector)
Stress; Psychosocial risk management; Drivers and barriers for psychosocial
risk management)
Thank you for your attention!
EU-OSHA: http://osha.europa.eu
Malgorzata Milczarek:
[email protected]