Forum 5 - The Changing World of Work

OSH in figures: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders in the EU - Facts and figures

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) remain the most common occupational disease in the European Union and workers in all sectors and occupations can be affected. Recent figures, for example from Austria, Germany or France, also demonstrate an increasing impact of musculoskeletal disorders on costs. This latest report, following on from the Agency’s previous research, aims to give an updated overview of the current European situation as regards musculoskeletal disorders, the trends over the years since the first campaign in 2000, and a detailed insight into the causes and circumstances behind MSDs. The report highlights the main issues and aims to provide a well-founded evidence base, helping policy makers, actors at enterprise and sector level, as well as researchers and those who record, prevent and compensate occupational diseases in the European Union to set the agenda for the next years.

Factsheet 92 - Mainstreaming OSH into business management. Summary of an Agency report

Organisations deal with occupational safety and health (OSH) in different ways. Some have little expertise in OSH and simply react to occupational accidents, work-related diseases and absenteeism as they arise. Others strive to manage OSH more systematically and proactively by mainstreaming OSH into the organisation’s overall management. A report aimed at providing information on how OSH can be incorporated into general business management is summarized in Factsheet 92. The report comprises a literature review, an overview of related policies and examples of good practice.

OSH in figures: stress at work — facts and figures

Stress at work is common throughout Europe. In surveys carried out every five years by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, respondents name it as the second most common threat posed by the working environment. Only musculoskeletal problems are seen as more likely to damage workers’ health. According to the fourth European Survey of Working Conditions, carried out in 2005 in all Member States, stress was experienced by an average 22% of working Europeans. In 2002, the annual economic cost of work-related stress in the EU15 was estimated at EUR 20,000 million.