Occupational hazards - Feb 23

LIVING IN the changing and complex world we do, it’s hard to predict exactly what lies ahead of us. However, we can be certain our OSH profession will continue to be at the heart of business; assisting, advising and advocating for good health and safety principles, practice and working conditions, and ensuring they are socially sustainable and looking after their number one asset: their people.

I have previously covered the links between OSH and sustainability in this column. Since then, IOSH has commissioned research looking into how people feel as an outcome and impact of what is happening at work. The results go some way to demonstrating the importance of businesses treating their people right.

Social issues such as OSH, human rights, labour rights, equality and human capital are all about people and are increasingly being recognised as central to corporate sustainability. Therefore, socially sustainable organisations are those that recognise and prioritise the adoption of a holistic person-centred approach to everything they do. They recognise the value of their workers, treat them as an asset and invest in them. This includes the creation of conditions to promote decent work – which underpins corporate performance and sustainability.

Companies driven by this approach are more capable of producing lasting value, profit, stronger performance, growth and sustainable workforces.

So, what did the survey, commissioned in October 2022, show us? Conducted by BF Media, it surveyed over 2,000 workers and more than 500 line managers and senior leaders based in the UK. 

Some of the key findings included:

• 44% [of employees who responded to the IOSH survey] don’t trust their employer has their safety and health in mind;

• 39% don’t feel their work is generally supportive of their physical and mental health;

• only 61% of employees are giving their best at work;

• just over half (52%) feel a sense of loyalty to their employer;

• nearly half of employees (49%) don’t feel appreciated for who they are and the work they do;

• and around two-thirds (66%) don’t feel listened to, look after and motivated.

These are results that can’t be ignored. As I mentioned, organisations cannot be sustainable without protecting the safety, health and wellbeing of their workers. But clearly many workers do not believe this is happening in their work. 

There is a correlation between employees feeling they aren’t looked after at work and them not giving their best or feeling loyalty toward their employers. In this period of major uncertainty, now is the time for employers to step up, invest in their workforce and demonstrate that looking after their workers is key to them, showing they value them and the work they do. Failure to do so will have an impact on workers’ performance and engagement and, as such, it will impact how sustainable the business is.

IOSH encourages businesses to adopt forward-looking, long-term strategies and broader measures of social sustainability and human capital value. They should adopt enhanced disclosure and reporting frameworks, to assess the value of the workforce and achieve better corporate human capital performance – which is in addition to their financial reporting.

OSH professionals play a crucial role in sustainability because, put simply, OSH is already a factor within social sustainability. They can help organisations create reporting and learning cultures in which prevention lessons are learned. They are best placed to work across the business to support socially sustainable practices and OSH performance evaluation and reporting.

Businesses need to take this seriously now, or risk falling behind.

Ruth Wilkinson is head of policy at the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health. For more information, visit www.iosh.com