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Special report: Health and Safety; Why healthy workplaces make good sense

 

In association with IOSH

 

Richard Jones reports on how businesses can move the health agenda forward

 

 

 

 

The costs of working-age ill health is put at around £100bn every year, according to the national director for health and work, Dame Carol Black. Annually, an estimated two million people suffer ill-health they put down to work. And some 24.6 million working days were lost in 2008/09 due to work-related illnesses. It's clear we need to create a healthier UK plc.

 

And in increasing numbers of organisations, in the private and public sectors, health and wellbeing are rising up the agenda. A key milestone was the government's response to Dame Carol Black's review of working age health. Also, the Boorman review of the NHS highlighted that "poor workforce health has a high cost" and concluded that the case for health and wellbeing was "compelling".

 

It's well known that being in work can be one of the best things for your health and wellbeing, as long as the work is 'good'. Among other things, this means work that's safe, supportive and meets people's individual needs. So what we need is better management to stop workers getting ill or injured; better support for those with health conditions; and better use of workplaces to promote health and wellbeing.

 

Investing in your workforce can help show you care for and value your staff. Encouraging employees to plan and take part in health-related activities at work encourages social interaction and community, helping achieve a happy, motivated workforce that's more likely to stick around and perform well. We know good feelings about work have been linked with higher productivity, profitability and staff retention. And the pay back on interventions can be substantial. For example, Glasgow City Council reported saving £4.5m using a scheme involving training and occupational health support; and a recent study found a benefit-cost ratio of 34:1 over six months for physiotherapy in a call centre.

 

So, once they've got their work-related risks under control, how can employers also deliver on wellbeing? Leadership from a senior manager is crucial and HR, occupational health and health and safety practitioners all have important roles. Key to wellbeing is the promotion of positive mental and physical health to all employees, who need to be fully consulted and engaged in the process.

 

There are lots of free resources out there and also online tools to help employers assess the cost-impact of both wellbeing programmes and ill health. Please see the free IOSH guides 'A healthy return' and 'Working well together' for more details. www.iosh.co.uk/techguide

 

It may be sensible and cost-effective to begin with issues that are giving the staff most problems, such as stress or musculoskeletal disorders (eg. back, neck and arm problems), while other improvement areas include healthy eating, physical activity, smoking, alcohol and drugs. Healthy food options and information at work can help people improve their eating habits and as workers can spend significant amounts of time there, many in sedentary jobs. Opportunities for physical activity at work can help too.

 

Another important aspect of wellbeing is supporting employees with health conditions to remain in or return to work following absence. There is a belief that people with health problems should not return to work until 100 per cent fit. However, evidence shows that as long as the correct provisions are made, managing an ill health condition at work is often better for the individual than prolonged absence. Recovery and long term management of health conditions at work can be assisted by:

  • Education programmes for managers to address misconceptions and stigma about conditions such as mental illness
  • Information about self-managing common health conditions and details of support groups
  • Encouraging employees to set up their own in-house support groups
  • Flexible working arrangements so employees can attend treatment or take frequent rest breaks
  • Access to appropriate interventions - psychological (like counselling or cognitive behavioural therapy) or physical (such as physiotherapy)

 

 

To help organisations improve their health and wellbeing, IOSH is piloting a training course with support from the Department of Work and Pensions, to upskill health and safety practitioners, so they can communicate more effectively on workplace health protection and promotion issues and influence decisions. A stronger multidisciplinary approach is needed so that it becomes normal practice for employers to provide support and adaptations for those with health conditions. Together, we can achieve healthier and productive UK workplaces and better health through better work.

 

 

 


Richard Jones is policy and technical director at IOSH