Increased focus on mental health and safety at work since the corona crisis
21/6/2023
COVID-19 made the importance of mental health in the workplace clearer than ever. ISO took the initiative and developed an additional standard, ISO 45003 Occupational health and safety management - Psychological health and safety at work - Guidelines for managing psychosocial risks. This standard helps employers create the right environment for the mental safety of their employees. Do you also want to get started with ISO 45003? You can do so easily with our ISO 45001 Master Track, which includes ISO 45003.
ISO 45003 is a global standard that provides practical guidelines for dealing with psychological health in the workplace. As well as defining psychosocial hazards, this standard also creates a management framework that recognises these hazards as major challenges to occupational health, safety and well-being.
Psychological and social worries increase the likelihood of work-related stress and can lead to psychological or physical harm. Examples include excessive working hours, poor leadership, bullying, an unpleasant work environment, or exposure to dangerous tasks.
Psychosocial hazards negatively affect our mental health and safety. But they also compromise our general health, safety and well-being at work.
Employees face various risks, including poor health and unhealthy behaviours, or reduced job satisfaction, commitment, and productivity.
The performance and sustainability of your organisation also deteriorate. And that has economic costs, both for your company and for society. For your organisation, psychosocial risks mean higher costs through sick leave, reduced quality of products or services, recruitment and training, workplace investigations and lawsuits, as well as damage to your reputation.
Using standards to effectively manage psychosocial risks offers many benefits. For example, greater employee engagement, higher productivity, and a more innovative and sustainable organisation.
ISO 45003 outlines the psychosocial hazards arising from work organisation, social factors, work environment, equipment or hazardous tasks. The standard links these to a set of management measures that can be used to eliminate the dangers or minimise the associated risks.
The coronavirus crisis has changed the way people live and work. Major changes to workplaces and working hours, as well as less physical interaction, have had drastic effects on mental well-being.
ISO 45003 provides the framework for employers to be able to absorb the impact. The future of mental health in the workplace requires a culture change with more compassion, more understanding, and more sustainable ways of working.
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