The impact of national legislation on psychosocial risks on organisational action plans, psychosocial working conditions, and employee work-related stress in Europe

Changes needed to reduce risk of musculoskeletal disorders

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are the main contributor to disability levels, which are rising as populations age. Workplace hazard exposures are a major source of this problem, and current workplace risk management practices require substantial changes to tackle it more effectively. Most importantly, the current focus of risk management on "manual handling" tasks must broaden to encompass the whole job. This is necessary because a wide range of psychosocial hazards, most of which operate across the whole job rather than particular tasks, are significant contributors to risk. To ensure that risk-control actions are effective, a recurring risk management cycle that includes worker participation and addresses risk from both biomechanical and psychosocial hazards will be essential. Legislation that mandates workplace management of psychosocial hazards would be helpful. Amendment by regulatory bodies of MSD-related guidance and codes of practice so that they reflect current research evidence would also be helpful in communicating the need for change to workplace stakeholders.

Relationship Between Occupational Safety and Health Policy Principles, Organizational Action on Work-related Stress and the Psychosocial Work Environment in Italy

Background

It is acknowledged that legislation acts as a motivator for organizational action on psychosocial risks. Our study aims to provide evidence on the relationship between key occupational safety and health (OSH) policy principles and organizational action on work-related stress, and, in turn, with reported employee job demands and resources and their experience of work-related stress. We focus on Italy where specific legislation and practices on work-related stress were introduced in 2008 which are underpinned by these key OSH policy principles.

Methods

Secondary analysis of the Italian samples from the employer ESENER-2 and employee 6th EWCS surveys was conducted, using path analysis in structural equation modeling (SEM) linking the two datasets.

Results

We found a strong statistically significant relationship between OSH policy principles and organizational action on work-related stress (C.I. = .62-.78 p < .001). The existence of an organizational action plan on work-related stress was found to be significantly associated with more reported job resources (C.I. = .02-.24, p < .05) but these were not found to be significantly associated with less work-related stress. No significant association was found between having an organizational action plan for work-related stress and reported job demands. However, job demands were significantly related to reported work-related stress (C.I. = .27-.47, p < .001).

Conclusions

Findings add support to the call for specific legislation on work-related psychosocial risks and highlight how an organizational OSH culture underpinned by key OSH principles, and awareness/competence development on psychosocial risk management can have a positive effect on organizational action. However, further support needs to be provided to organizations around developing primary prevention interventions at the organizational level with the aim of reducing job demands.

COVID-19 and healthcare worker mental well-being: Comparative case studies on interventions in six countries

Healthcare worker (HCW) mental well-being has become a global public health priority as health systems seek to strengthen their resilience in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Analysing data from the Health System Response Monitor, we present six case studies (Denmark, Italy, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Romania, and the United Kingdom) as a comparative review of policy interventions supporting HCW mental health during the pandemic. The results illustrate a wide range of interventions. While Denmark and the United Kingdom built on pre-existing structures to support HCW mental wellbeing during the pandemic, the other countries required new interventions. Across all cases, there was a reliance on self-care resources, online training tools, and remote professional support. Based on our analysis, we develop four policy recommendations for the future of HCW mental health supports. First, HCW mental health should be seen as a core facet of health workforce capacity. Second, effective mental health supports requires an integrated psychosocial approach that acknowledges the importance of harm prevention strategies and organisational resources (psychological first aid) alongside targeted professional interventions. Third, personal, professional and practical obstacles to take-up of mental health supports should be addressed. Fourth, any specific support or intervention targeting HCW's mental health is connected to, and dependent on, wider structural and employment factors (e.g. system resourcing and organisation) that determine the working conditions of HCWs.

Demand-Resource Profiles and Job Satisfaction in the Healthcare Sector: A Person-Centered Examination Using Bayesian Informative Hypothesis Testing

Work characteristics may independently and jointly affect well-being, so that whether job demands deplete or energize employees depends on the resources available in the job. However, contradictory results on their joint effects have emerged so far in the literature. We argue that these inconsistencies can be partially explained by two arguments in the contemporary literature in the field. First, most studies in the job design domain are based on classic variable-centered methodologies which, although informative, are not well suited to investigate complex patterns of interactions among multiple variables. Second, these studies have mainly focused on generic work characteristics (e.g., workload, control, support), and are lacking in occupational specificity. Thus, to overcome these limitations, in the current research we include generic and occupation-specific work characteristics and adopt a person-centered approach to (a) identify different patterns of interactions of job demands and resources in a sample of healthcare employees, and (b) determine the degree to which these patterns are associated with employee well-being. We involved a sample of 1513 Italian healthcare providers and collected data on key job demands (workload, emotional dissonance, patient demands and physical demands) and resources (control, management support and peers' support). We focused on job satisfaction as a broad indicator of well-being. Latent profile analysis revealed four profiles of job demands and resources: high strain-isolated, resourceless, resourceful and active job on the ward. The results of Bayesian informative hypothesis testing showed the highest support for the hypothesis stating that healthcare employees belonging to the active job on the ward profile (medium-high demands, high resources) were the most satisfied. Conversely, employees belonging to the high strain-isolated profile (high demands, low resources) and the resourceless profile (medium-low demands, low resources) were the least satisfied. Overall, our study confirms the key role played by job resources in determining well-being in high-risk sectors, demonstrating that job satisfaction can develop both in challenging and less demanding situations. On a practical level, mapping the complexity of the healthcare psychosocial work environment has important implications, allowing for a better assessment process of employee well-being and helping to identify the most effective and fitting interventions.

Occupational Safety and Health Staging Framework for Decent Work

The 2030 United Nations Goal 8 for sustainable development focuses on decent work. There is utility in identifying the occupational safety and health aspects of Goal 8, as they pertain to the four pillars of decent work: job creation, social protection, rights of workers, and social dialogue. A workgroup of the International Commission on Occupational Health and collaborators addressed the issue of decent work and occupational safety and health (OSH) with the objective of elaborating a framework for guidance for practitioners, researchers, employers, workers, and authorities. This article presents that framework, which is based on an examination of the literature and the perspectives of the workgroup. The framework encompasses the intersection of the pillars of decent (employment creation, social protection, rights of workers, and social dialogue) work with new and emerging hazards and risks related to various selected determinants: new technologies and new forms of work; demographics (aging and gender); globalization; informal work; migration; pandemics; and OSH policies and climate change. The OSH field will need an expanded focus to address the future of decent work. This focus should incorporate the needs of workers and workforces in terms of their well-being. The framework identifies a starting point for the OSH community to begin to promote decent work.