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Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) face all the occupational safety and health (OSH) challenges that confront larger enterprises, but may not have “in-house” expertise in dealing with these issues. This page highlights key information for addressing the psychosocial issues introduces the Agency’s psychosocial issues web feature where further information is available.
When we talk about psychosocial issues we mean three issues in particular
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Work-related stress
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Violence at work
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Bullying at work
All these issues may be interrelated, and can be harder to identify, especially when compared to ‘traditional’ health and safety issues as dangerous substances and machinery. However, failing to address issues such as stress can ruin businesses, as well as the health of your workers.
Work-related stress is experienced when the demands of the work environment exceed the worker’s ability to cope with (or control) them. Being under pressure is normal and is what gives us the energy and motivation to deal with challenges, but when demand and pressures become too much, they lead to stress, and that is bad for workers and their organisations. Stress is not a disease, but can lead to mental and physical ill health. Work-related stress is a symptom of an organisational problem, not an individual weakness.
Violence at work is defined as any incident where a person is abused, threatened, or assaulted during work, and which endangers their safety, health, well-being, or work performance. It covers insults, threats, or physical or psychological aggression exerted by people from outside the organisation against a person at work. There may be a racial or sexual dimension to the violence. Violence to staff is an occupational safety and health issue and should be dealt with at the organisational level. It is not an individual’s problem.
An act of violence generally arises in a situation where there is very high or suppressed tension or pressure, and where personal matters are at stake. Conflict that has not been resolved appropriately can escalate to violence. Workers in the education, health, and public service sectors can find themselves victims of violence because aggressors see them as “representatives” of the institution or system.
Workplace bullying is defined as repeated, unreasonable behaviour directed towards an employee, or group of employees, that creates a risk to health and safety.
In this context, “unreasonable behaviour” means behaviour that a reasonable person, having regard to all the circumstances, would expect to victimise, humiliate, undermine, or threaten. “Behaviour” includes actions of individuals or a group. A system of work may be used as a means of victimising. “Risk to health and safety” includes risk to the mental and physical health of the employee.
Bullying can involve both verbal and physical attacks, as well as more subtle acts like devaluation of a colleague’s work or social isolation. Bullying often involves misuse or abuse of power, where the targets can have trouble in defending themselves. Bullying may encompass both physical and psychological violence.
A risk assessment is nothing more than a careful examination of what, in your work, could cause harm to people, so that you can judge whether you have taken enough precautions or should do more to prevent harm. The aim is to make sure that no one gets hurt or becomes ill. A risk assessment involves identifying the hazards present and then evaluating the extent of the risks involved, taking into account existing precautions.
Guidance on how to carry out risk assessments for stress, violence, and bullying can be found in all community languages in the Agency’s factsheets 22, 23, and 24.
The Agency’s stress web feature contains much more information on the issues surrounding stress, violence, and bullying at work.
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