WORKPLACE HEALTH & WELLBEING TIMES ARE A CHANGIN’
It is widely assumed that the ever-transforming world of work will be good for our wellbeing. However, there will be many challenges to navigate and risks to control, says Lawrence Waterman, Chairman of the British Safety Council.
In a report commissioned by the British Safety Council, the future impact of work on health, safety and wellbeing has been examined in great detail. The report confirms that people are living and working longer. Many tasks are being automated and modern communication technologies are dissolving the work/home divide. New materials like nanotechnology (including tiny air-born waste products that can damage our health) and new technologies can present new risks, as does an increasing use of more ‘flexible’ employee contracts.
WELLBEING Some technological developments will be beneficial. For example, autonomous dump trucks used at mining sites can be remotely controlled by operators, eliminating the need for human drivers and their close exposure to dust. Also, with greater use of technology, particularly smart phones, there are opportunities for more flexible working patterns that can boost people’s sense of control over their work, a key component of mental wellbeing.
Automation is at the heart of many of these discussions. Research by IPPR shows that 10million jobs are at risk from automation in the UK. Yet, there are health advantages of automating certain hazardous processes which will result in the removal of people from exposure to the associated risks.
Besides, a simple calculation of increasing automation may not fully reflect what will happen, as we are already seeing counter-trends of people being reintroduced into the workplace because of the recognition of the benefits of personal, human labour. It is far more likely that people and intelligent machines will increasingly become ‘colleagues’ in the future. A colleague who can work without breaks, who is always ‘on,’ who isn’t going
to share much ‘social’ information, is a very different colleague. Such a relationship could easily create stress and undermine wellbeing.
“AUTOMATION MAY ALSO INCREASE INEQUALITY AND THERE WILL BE LESS SKILLED WORKERS WHO WILL NOT SHARE THE BENEFITS.”
There are, of course, more pernicious mental and physical wellbeing risks on the horizon. The same information technologies can make people continually connected and over-engaged in work and lead to fatigue and exhaustion. Safety regulator HSE estimates that some 60-80% of accidents in the workplace are related to fatigue and poor judgement. Working with robots who do not need to chat, socialise or take a break carries risks of exhaustion and burn-out, particularly in a context of an ever-greater drive for efficiency.
Automation may also increase inequality – at least in the next 20 years – and there will be many less skilled workers who will not share the benefits. In many ways, the rise of non-traditional contracts (such as zero- contract hours) or the gig/platform economy is only made possible by certain digital tools. While giving people more flexibility, they can dilute the ‘psychological contact’ between the worker and employer, undermining both job fulfilment and job commitment.
We also know that people at work derive important health benefits from the social nature of work and this will be an issue to address in the future. As individuals, we will be staying in work for longer and, given the importance of work for wellbeing, that can be a positive development.
MITIGATING RISKS Government needs to look at incentives (such as tax breaks) for employers to introduce health and wellbeing programmes. Companies should test innovative approaches and wellbeing programmes in consultation with workers and trade unions. The ability of workers to cope with the mental pressure of a changing world of work is going to be a key attribute in the future. Schools and training bodies, including those for safety professionals, need to focus on both ‘soft-skills’ such as collaboration, creativity and leadership (which are transferable and less prone to automation) and skills associated with new technology, such as working in collaboration with intelligent machines and robots.
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