Mental Health in the Workplace: Research project develops first guidelines for employers

On 24 June 2014, the EU-funded research project ‘mental health in the workplace’ held its mid-term conference, discussing first reports and guidelines developed by the project. The main question the Commisison asked was: do we need a new framework directive on mental health in the workplace. Mental health is a challenge becoming more urgent, as work-lives are prolonged and as mental health conditions are increasing.

The project is led by Prevent vzw (Belgium), the University of Nottingham, the Work Research Centre (Ireland), TNC (Netherlands) and the London School of Economics. Speakers showed that there is a business case for mental health: caring about the mental health of employees reduces sick leaves and improves efficiency of employees.

Different application of occupational health and safety regulations on mental health

At this moment, there is a framework directive (89/391/EC) on health and safety at work that can include mental health alongside other occupational health conditions. However, this is not handled in the same way in every member state. Some EU countries refuse to look at mental health at the same level as at physical health when considering occupational diseases, arguing that mental health conditions have their root in a number of very personal factors, not solely in factors related to work. Also, while there are a great number of initiatives around mental health, there is a lack of specific guidance for employers. The diversity of interventions is very large, too, ranging to mandatory risk assessments in the UK to strategies to increase voluntary risk assessments including psycho-social risks in Germany.

Towards more regulation?

Researchers have also conducted a survey on what key stakeholders think is necessary: whether it is sufficient to improve mental health interventions within the current policy framework or whether to overhaul it by writing a new directive. The result is that non-binding initiatives are the intervention upon which most people agree, however replies diverged a lot according to the type of actor surveyed (employer, trade union representative, labour inspector, doctor etc.)

The researchers also analysed how much new policy initiatives on European level would cost, but the costs of writing and implementing a new directive and resorting to voluntary measures do not differ greatly. However, researchers pointed out that it is important to assess the cost of non-action. At this time, there is a growing trend that mental health conditions become the reason for early retirement, resulting in lower employment of older people and an indadequate constitution of their pension rights. Therefore, the cost of non-action is quite high.

Meanwhile, the project will deliver guidelines for employers on how to include psychosocial risks at the workplace into their occupational health and safety strategies.

The presentations of the conference can be downloaded here: https://we.tl/Ttq1Tvwstl

For further information, please contact Philippe Seidel at the AGE Secretariat :philippe.seidel@age-platform.eu

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