World Day for Safety and Health at Work

 The evidence reviewed in the report entitled '' The psychosocial working environment: Global developments and pathways for action '' shows that the psychosocial working environment has a powerful influence on workers’ physical and mental health and well-being, as well as on organizational performance. How jobs are designed, managed and organized, and the broader policies, practices and procedures that govern work, can lead to negative consequences – such as increased risk of illness, injury and reduced work ability – or to positive outcomes, including improved health, well-being and performance. Translating this knowledge into consistent prevention requires coordinated efforts by governments, employers and workers and their organizations, OSH professionals and other relevant actors. These efforts need to focus on three interrelated areas: strengthening the knowledge base and monitoring systems; improving the coherence and clarity of policy and regulatory frameworks; an...

 Building on this taxonomy, the report adopts a multi-level perspective that prioritizes modifiable features of the psychosocial working environment, from how work is designed, managed and organized to broader workplace policies and practices. This approach moves beyond individual-centred perspectives that focus primarily on workers’ perceptions or personal characteristics and emphasize adaptation to existing working conditions. Instead, it highlights elements of work organization and management that fall within employers’ sphere of influence. The perspective therefore supports a proactive and systemic approach to the design and management of work, focusing on psychosocial risks that, so far as is reasonably practicable, can be managed within the workplace. Within this perspective, psychosocial factors are grouped across three broad and interrelated levels. While these levels overlap and interact, and should not be understood as independent silos, this structure helps clarify wher...

  The psychosocial working environment encompasses the elements of work and interactions at work related to how jobs are designed, how work is organized and managed, and the broader policies, practices and procedures that govern work, as well as the ways in which these elements interrelate, all of which can influence workers’ health and well-being as well as organizational performance. When this environment is well structured, supportive and inclusive, it can promote motivation, engagement, productivity, job satisfaction, and overall well-being. When it is poorly designed, organized or managed, psychosocial hazards may emerge and give rise to psychosocial risks. If these risks are not effectively managed, they can have serious consequences for workers’ physical and mental health and well-being, as well as for organizational outcomes, including increased absenteeism, reduced performance and higher turnover. Work-related psychosocial factors , hereafter referred to as psychosocial fa...

New ILO report finds that psychosocial risks at work account for nearly 45 million disability-adjusted life years lost annually, reflecting years of healthy life lost due to illness, disability, or premature death.

Long hours are not only a scheduling issue. They are a psychosocial risk with implications for safety and health. The ILO estimates that 35% of workers globally work more than 48 hours a week. What would healthier working-time arrangements look like in practice? Psychosocial risks arise from poor work design, organization, and management (e.g., high workload, low control, bullying) that cause stress, leading to mental and physical health issues. These risks severely impact safety by causing fatigue, distraction, and burnout, increasing workplace accidents, absenteeism, and staff turnover

Work plays a central role in people’s lives. For most workers, it occupies a substantial share of waking hours, and it shapes identity, social connection and economic security. When work is well designed and well managed, it provides structure and purpose, supports financial stability, enhances health and well-being, and contributes to organizational performance and productivity. Whether work produces these positive outcomes depends largely on the psychosocial working environment , understood as the aspects of work and interactions related to how jobs are designed, how work is organized and managed, and the broader policies, practices and procedures that govern work, and the ways in which these elements interrelate. Across the world, the psychosocial working environment is undergoing a profound transformation. Rapid technological change, including digitalisation and the introduction of AI-supported tools, has altered how work is coordinated, monitored and evaluated. New forms of work ,...

How's work?  For many workers, the answer lies not only in what they do, but in how their work is designed, organized and managed, and in the broader policies, practices and procedures that govern work. Work can offer meaning, support and a sense of purpose. But when demands are excessive, roles are unclear, support is lacking, or systems fail to protect people, psychosocial risks can harm workers' safety and health, affect organizational performance and carry wider social and economic costs. As work continues to evolve, the challenge is not only to respond to harm, but to foster healthier psychosocial working environments through preventive action. In commemorating the World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2026, this event brings together ILO constituents, ministers and international experts to discuss global developments and practical pathways for ensuring a healthy psychosocial working environment. Watch ensuring a healthy psychosocial working environment! Agencies, Fu...