News |
29 November 2024
Psychosocial risks and their impact on the mental and physical work environment are a major challenge in our workplaces. Stress, anxiety and depression are common work-related health problems affecting workers, but also managers and leaders.
Ida Karlsson, Work Environment Advisor at SSG, writes about psychosocial risks and their impact on the work environment.
Psychosocial risks often arise from poor work organisation, inadequate leadership and insufficient social context in the workplace. Examples of such risks include high workloads, conflicting demands, lack of influence and support, and bullying and harassment. These factors can lead to serious mental and physical health problems, such as burnout, anxiety, depression and even suicidal thoughts. Workers suffering from prolonged stress can eventually develop serious physical health problems such as cardiovascular disease or musculoskeletal disorders, but it can also have consequences for the workplace environment as a whole.
For organisations, this is not only a moral obligation to act, but also an economic necessity. Negative effects such as poor business performance, increased absenteeism and high staff turnover can be avoided by managing psychosocial risks in a structured way. And, of course, help more people feel better both mentally and physically.
Surveys conducted by EU-OSHA show that 27% of workers in the EU experience work-related stress, anxiety or depression. Effectively addressing this requires a preventive and systematic approach. It is important that employers involve workers in the process of identifying and managing risks, as they are best placed to understand the problems that may arise in their workplace.
We want safe workplaces with people making wise and safe decisions, but can we always expect these safe decisions to be made when you are mentally unbalanced?
By managing psychosocial risks, employers can not only improve the wellbeing of their employees, but also ensure that wise decisions can be made, even when feeling unwell.
That said, dare to ask the question ‘how are you?’ and take the time to really listen to the answer. It can make a significant difference to both your colleague and your manager. Also consider the more humane aspects of risk assessments and when developing procedures and instructions. Don't let all decisions rest on the actions and behaviour of the individual.
