TIG Post

Tag: International Labour Organisation (ILO)

  • Work is killing 840,000 people a year, and stress is mainly the cause – UN report finds

    Work is killing 840,000 people a year, and stress is mainly the cause – UN report finds

    More than 840,000 people die every year from health conditions linked to psychosocial risks at work – including long working hours, job insecurity, and workplace harassment– according to a new report by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), a United Nations agency.

    Work-related psychosocial risks are mainly associated with cardiovascular diseases and mental health disorders, including suicide, the report noted.

    “Psychosocial risks are becoming one of the most significant challenges for occupational safety and health in the modern world of work,” said Manal Azzi, team lead on Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) policy and systems at the ILO.

    “Improving the psychosocial working environment is essential not only for protecting workers’ mental and physical health, but also for strengthening productivity, organisational performance, and sustainable economic development,” she added.

    Work shapes identity, social connection, and economic security, and its design and organisation determine whether it is coherent and adequately resourced, or whether excessive demands, role ambiguity, and perceived unfairness create harm.

    The heavy toll on health
    The report found that health hazards lead to nearly 45 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) lost each year, with the combined impact of cardiovascular disease and mental disorders estimated to result in 1.37 per cent of global GDP lost annually.

    In Europe alone, the ILO reported 112,333 deaths, close to six million DALYs, and 1.43% GDP loss.

    Cardiovascular diseases account for the majority of attributable deaths, yet the overall loss of healthy life years is greater for mental disorders, the authors wrote.

    According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), depression and anxiety account for approximately 12 billion lost workdays annually.

    The most common conditions include depression, anxiety disorders, burnout, sleep disturbances, and fatigue.

    Mental health struggles can also drive physical health harms through unhealthy coping mechanisms often adopted to manage stress and fatigue.

    Smoking, alcohol consumption, overeating, and physical inactivity due to problems in the workplace can lead to obesity, hypertension, and other chronic diseases.

    “Evidence also suggests that health-related behaviours and psychosocial risks interact over time, with unhealthy behaviours reinforcing and amplifying the adverse health effects associated with psychosocial stress exposure,” the authors wrote.

    What are the main causes of harm at work?
    The report identifies long working hours, bullying, job strain, effort–reward imbalance, job insecurity and violence and harassment as the main drivers of bad health among workers.

    “It is important to recall that long working hours, a critical psychosocial risk factor associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke, remain widespread,” the authors noted.

    The ILO estimates that globally, 35% of workers work more than 48 hours per week.

    Research by the WHO found that working 55 or more hours per week is associated with an estimated 35% higher risk of a stroke and a 17% higher risk of dying from ischemic heart disease, compared to working 35 to 40 hours a week.

    Bullying and other forms of harassment and violence are also flagged as a major concern.

    The report noted that 23% of workers globally have experienced at least one form of violence or harassment in their working life, with psychological violence being the most prevalent at 18%.

    These should address how work is designed, organised, and managed, including workload management, role clarity, staffing level, and working hours.

    When prevention falls short, the ILO calls for timely, non-stigmatising support, such as access to support services, temporary work adjustments, occupational health input, and fair return-to-work processes.

  • Workers, stakeholders must develop conducive environment for social dialogue

    Senior Technical Specialist, International Labour Organisation (ILO), Bureau for Worker Activities, Madam Inviolata Chinyangarara, has advised workers’ organisations to work with governments and employers to develop a conducive environment for social dialogue.

    Madam Chinyangarara said working with governments and employers would ensure there was qualitative and meaningful social dialogue based on trust and respect for their rights and independence.

    She gave the advice in a goodwill message at a two-day capacity-building organised by the Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL) in Tema with support from the ILO on the theme: “Innovative Strategies for Organising Workers in the New World of Work.”

    She said for unions to contribute to building stronger, more sustainable, and equal economies and societies, they must continue to exercise leadership, demonstrate relevance, and provide quality services to current and new members.

    She noted that a pre-requisite for any trade union’s success was the existence of an organisational socio-economic vision and strategic response for addressing the changes in the world of work, society, and the economy.

    Madam Chinyangarara stated the world of work was changing at a very rapid pace, as there was the decline of jobs in manufacturing, the rise of non-standard and flexible work, persistence and growth of the informal economy, changes in employment regulations and the limitation and violation of trade union rights have caused unionisation rates to fall in most countries worldwide.

    She said increased precarious work and other forms of non-standard employment as declining solidarity with vulnerable groups of workers such as migrants and workers in the informal economy were some of the challenges to work on with stakeholders.

    She noted that the digital economy and the way it was transforming jobs and employment relationships and the social divide between workers with stable, paying jobs and workers with unstable, poorly paid, or precarious jobs, or no job at all, had its effect on trade unionisation.

    She observed that the COVID-19 pandemic had added a new sense of urgency to the challenges facing workers’ organisations to respond to transformations in the world of work driven by globalisation and by demographic, environmental and technological changes, as well as to play a crucial role in crisis mitigation, response, and recovery.

    She commended the GFL for developing a strategic plan for 2023-2026 which would serve as a guiding framework for responding to these and other challenges faced by workers and their organisations in the new world of work.

    She said in that context, the ILO was collaborating with the GFL and its affiliates to place particular emphasis on strengthening the institutional capacity of the GFL to develop forward-looking solutions to sustain and improve operations.

    She said it also seeks to reinforce its representative leadership, and advocacy roles, while renewing membership strategies, service provision and delivery mechanisms, as well as enhancing policy advocacy and influence.

    Madam Chinyangarara indicated that the ILO focus in the 2022-23 biennium was anchored around supporting the efforts of organisations such as the GFL to bolster their capacity to analyse and understand the new realities in the world of work.

    It is also to strengthen their own institutional and organisational processes and adopt innovative strategies for organising and servicing new and existing members, especially in the new context brought about by the crisis.

    She said to propel discussions on trade union renewal and revitalisation, the ILO ACTRAV produced materials addressing the trade union challenges, opportunities and prospects for remaining relevant, effective, and influential organisations in the future.


    Mr Abraham Koomson, GFL Secretary-General, said, “The labour movement had a responsibility to compel government to do the needful to create a congenial business environment for industries to thrive and be able to retain employees and expand.”

    He said companies were faced with clear and pressing threats both globally and internally as a result of bad government economic policies and a lack of commitment to promote the growth of local industries.

    Source: GNA