Queen’s University Belfast is to partner on a major, government-funded project to promote healthier work environments and more sustainable work practices across the UK.
The £1.8 Million study is being supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (which is funded by the UK's Department of Health and Social Care) and is designed to tackle priorities in work and health research.
A team of researchers from
Queen’s Business School, led by
Dr Juliet Hassard, will join researchers from several universities across the UK on the study, including Birkbeck; University of London; the University of Nottingham; and Lancaster University, which is leading the project.
According to experts, the UK is facing a crisis, with
2.78 Million people out of work due to ill-health, at an estimated employer cost of £18.8 Billion per year and additional NHS and welfare costs. The sharpest increase in the last decade has been driven by mental-health conditions.
Research further shows that poor mental health affects workers across all age groups and backgrounds, often combining with physical health conditions to make employment harder to sustain.
Dr Hassard from Queen’s Business School said the ambitious three-year research programme will support the development of updated prevention-oriented policies and metrics, which can then be translated into national, regional, sectoral, and organisational interventions. She added:
“Poor mental health is now one of the leading reasons people leave the workforce, highlighting the need for a greater focus on prevention. This project will examine how policies and workplace practices can help create healthier psychosocial work environments - where work is designed, organised and managed in ways that support wellbeing.
“By identifying what works in the UK and internationally, we hope to generate evidence that informs future policy and helps more people remain in healthy, sustainable work."
Building on previous work, the project team will also:
- Assess existing processes and policies in the UK, comparing the data with other countries and identifying areas of good practice which prevent poor mental health. They will also suggest ways the UK could improve its policies.
- Find out which approaches to preventing poor mental health in the workplace work best, and which will indicate whether someone is more likely to experience good mental health and wellbeing.
- Give recommendations on how this new knowledge can inform the design of a fair and positive psychosocial work environment, and on how to promote sustainable work and reduce inequalities in health.
- Create a practical, evidence-based plan, to help turn this new knowledge into real changes in UK policies and workplace practices.
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Stavroula Leka, Distinguished Professor of Organisations, Work and Health at Lancaster University, who will be the overall lead on the project, said:
“While more people are economically inactive due to mental ill-health in the UK than in other countries, this is not a uniquely British challenge. Similar trends can be seen in other countries including Finland and Norway, but what makes them different is how they are responding.
“These countries have worked to revamp their regulation, policies and support systems, putting a healthy psychosocial work environment and sustainable work at the heart of these initiatives.”
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Dr Hassard is available for interview. Please contact Queen’s University Communications Office on comms.office@qub.ac.uk or 028 90 9097 3091
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