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Mental Health and Well-Beingof Workers

Office of the WHO Representative in the Philippines

24 October 2012

13th National Occupational Safety and HealthCongress

OSHC Complex, Diliman, Quezon City


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Workers health, safety and well-being The issue extends even further beyond individuals and

their families and is of paramount importance to the

productivity, competitiveness and sustainability ofenterprises, communities, and to national and regional

economies.



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Global Health Burden About two million people die each year as a result of

occupational accidents and work-related illnesses or

injuries Another 268 million non-fatal workplace accidents

result in an average of three lost workdays per


casua y, as we as m on new cases o wor -related illness each year


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Why develop a healthy workplaceWhy develop a healthy workplaceWhy develop a healthy workplaceWhy develop a healthy workplace

initiative?initiative?initiative?initiative?

It is the right thing to do: business ethics. It is the smart thing to do: the business case.

Companies that promote and protect workers' health


,

also enjoy better rates of employee retention.

It is the legal thing to do: the legal case.

Businesses that fail to provide healthy work

environments may become involved in costlylitigation under national or international labour laws


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Work and Mental Wellbeing

Work has an important role in promoting mentalwellbeing.

It is a determinant of self-esteem and identity


Work can provide a sense of fulfilment andopportunities for social interaction

Work can also have negative effects on mental

health, particularly in the form of stress.


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Causes of stress at work high demands and low control; lack of control and poor decision-making latitude

low social support

imbalance between effort and reward

monotony and unpleasant tasks

poor communication and information;


unc ear or am guous ns ruc ons an ro e, unc earorganizational and personal goals

lack of participation

emotionally distressing human services work such as

health care or teachingjob insecurity;

time pressure

bullying, harassment and violence; and

organizational change).


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Mental Health: an important

workplace issue Globally, mental disorders are leading causes of disability. In

some high-income countries, as much as 40% of disability can

be attributed to mental disorders.

The productivity of individuals with unsupported mental health

needs may decline while at work: presenteeismpresenteeismpresenteeismpresenteeism.


Mental health problems can affect work performance in terms ofincrease in error rates, poor decision-making, loss of motivation

and commitment, tension and conflicts between colleagues.

Burnout and depression as well as stress-related physicalconditions such as high blood pressure, sleeping disorders and

low resistance to infections can result in an increase in overall

sickness absence.


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Mental Health: an important

workplace issue

Mental health problems in the workplace have

serious effects also for the productivity andcompetitiveness of businesses and thus theeconomy and society as a whole.

Em lo ees mental health status affects


employees performance and rates of illness,absenteeism and staff turnover.

Sickness absenteeism can lead to substantialproductivity losses.

Early retirement and exclusion from the labourforce due to work-related stress and mentalhealth problems account for an enormous shareof long-term social welfare benefits.


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Costs of Mental ill-health The costs of mental ill-health for the individuals

concerned, employers and society at large are enormous.

A conservative estimate from the ILOput them at 3-4% ofgross domestic product in the European Union. (OECD,2011)

In the United Kingdom, the total cost to employers of


men a ea pro ems among e r s a s es ma e obe nearly 26 billion each year, equivalent to 1035 forevery employee in the workforce.

The business costs comprise 8.4 billion per year insickness absence, 15.1 billion per year due to reducedproductivity at work and 2.4 billon per year in replacingpersonnel who leave their jobs because of mental ill health(Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, 2007).


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Stigma and Social Exclusion Mental disorders affect individuals and their

employment much beyond the economic issues.

People with mental disorders face stigmatization,social exclusion and barriers in obtaining equalopportunities at all levels of life.


n ng a o n e open a our mar e , re urn ngto work or retaining a job after sickness absencedue to mental health problems is often a doublechallenge because of the stigma attached to the

label mental. People with mental health problems have twicethe risk of losing their jobs and aredisproportionately out of work.


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Promoting mental health,

preventing mental disorders

Work increases self-esteem and the quality oflife.

Providing a healthy and inclusive working


environment can prevent mental health problemsand enhance opportunities to enter, remain at or

return to work when experiencing such problems.


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Strategies to improve the healthand well-being of people at work

can be achieved through a combination of: improving the organization of work and the

working environment;


encouraging personal development.

-(Luxembourg Declaration on Workplace Health

Promotion in the European Union )


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Good practices in the workplace Linking workplace health with relevant

enterprise policies and ensure that it becomes

part of daily practice (integration); Involving the employees in planning,implementing and evaluating workplace healthaction (participation);


ee ng o mprove e qua y o wor ng eand conditions and focus on the behavior of theindividual employee (a balanced approach);and

Ensuring that any action is based on an

analysis of the health requirements and needsof the various stakeholders within enterprisesand is part of continual improvement (need-based).

.


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Good practices in mental healthpromotion

Individual level: for example, improving coping skills toprevent stress and burnout and empowerment to be able to

manage transition periods and interpersonal relationships;


(corporate culture) and developing policies against bullyingand moral harassment; and

Working conditions: for example, reducing risk factors, the

design of workplaces and the organization of work,including supportive structures for women combining work

and child care.


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Common workplace Interventions

(1) Skills trainingbroadly defined knowledge about stress andcoping, training of mostly social skills such as stress andoccupational stress management, problem-solving,

communication and cognitive skills;(2) Improvement of occupational qualifications job-specific

knowledge and skills;


workplace characteristics such as working time, workorganization, schedule and strategies or employeeemployerrelationships;

(4) Relaxationphysiological aspects of occupational

functioning and coping with stress, e.g. progressive musclerelaxation;

(5) Physical exercisehealth and physical fitness enhancementby various sports disciplines, e.g. swimming, walking, aerobic;


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Prevention of mental disorders and promotion ofmental health in the workplace can be achieved notonly by providing working conditions conducive tohealth but also by promoting suitable individual

behaviour, in particular, enhancing personalresources for coping with daily stressors.

At the focal point of all efforts must be a culture of


personal responsibility. Mental health promotion initiatives make it possible

for men and women to successfully cope with stressfactors, to remain healthy and, at the same time,

contribute to the social and economic developmentof their societies.

---- EU Thematic Conference, Promoting mental healthand well-being in workplaces, March 2011, Berlin


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