Getting Ahead of the Curve: The Benefits of Proactively Managing Psychosocial Hazards

Sense of urgency

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been many unique and evolving challenges that have affected the way businesses operate, most notably the need for businesses to move to remote working arrangements and redesigning work to accommodate flexible working schedules. Along with these changes, there have been reports of individuals experiencing decreased levels of wellbeing, such as feelings of burnout and disengagement. Given these circumstances, employee mental health has become at the forefront for many organisations, and employers are becoming more aware of the importance of psychological health and safety in the workplace.

Whilst this is a change in the right direction for workplace wellbeing, it has taken a significant life event for many employers to change their attitude towards mental health. It is important that businesses continue to put their people first and proactively manage their employees’ mental health to reap the benefits.

What are psychosocial hazards, and why are they important?

Psychosocial hazards are those aspects of work itself and the work environment that can contribute to psychological harm. These include how work is designed and managed, the work environment and organisational context, and social interactions. Failing to manage psychosocial hazards can increase the risk of suffering both mental and physical health problems.

Businesses that do not assess and manage psychosocial hazards may experience challenges such as increased levels of bullying and turnover, absenteeism and presenteeism, and significant financial losses. On the flip side, taking the initiative to foster psychological health and safety in the workplace has shown to pay dividends, including increased performance, better staff engagement and retention, and overall better mental and physical health.

Workplace risk factors to consider

Some common psychosocial hazards that may negatively impact employee mental health include:

• Role ambiguity: job responsibilities are unclear or frequently changing
• Organizational injustice: inconsistency in the application of organisational policies and procedures or unfairness in the allocation of resources
• Inappropriate and unreasonable behaviour: e.g. violence, aggression, bullying, and harassment
• Inadequate support: lacking support and/or resources from leaders or colleagues to do tasks
• Poor leadership practices and work culture: leadership that creates or tolerates a culture of inappropriate behaviour, that doesn’t provide adequate support to workers, and that fails to manage psychosocial hazards
• Interpersonal conflict: conflict with colleagues or supervisor
• Excessive work demands: tasks involving high levels of physical, mental, and/or emotional effort, for prolonged periods of time
• Low job control or autonomy: workers having little say in how or when they do their work
• Poor change management: any change that is managed poorly, including poor planning, communication, and support for workers throughout the change period
• Low recognition and reward: an imbalance between workers’ efforts and associated recognition and reward.
• Remote/isolated work: working away from family, friends, and support systems for extended periods of time

Changes in Western Australia’s Legislation – What do you need to know?

In recent years, there has been a push towards increasing the awareness of psychosocial hazard management compliance and better protecting workers from psychological injury. New South Wales was the first state to act on this and provided a practical guide to establishing psychologically healthy and safe workplaces. Soon after, Western Australia was on board and updated their own Work Health and Safety Act 2020, as well as created a Code of Practice (Psychosocial Hazards in the Workplace) to reflect psychosocial hazard management.

One change that is consistent throughout the states is that “employers must, so far as reasonably practicable, provide and maintain for employees of the employer a working environment that is safe and without risks to health”. In this context, ‘health’ refers to both physical and psychological health. Although there is no strict mandate to comply, it is continuously being revised and is forecasted to be mandatory in the near future. Understanding how they will identify and address these psychosocial hazards, keeping up to date, and adhering to these new standards will help organisations stay ahead of the curve and ensure legal compliance in future.

ISO45003 Global Standard – A step in the right direction

In addition to the changes in Australia’s legislation, the ISO45003 2021 (International Organisation for Standardisation) is a window of opportunity for businesses to get ahead with regards to legislation and regulatory obligations, as well as reaping the benefits of a mentally healthy workplace.

The ISO45003 provides guidelines and examples of best practice to manage psychosocial hazards. More specifically, it helps organisations understand the role of leadership commitment and worker participation, planning, providing support, identification and assessment of risk, using combinations of interventions and performance evaluations. While it is not mandatory to comply with these standards, it is worthwhile, from a legal, financial, and performance perspective, to follow these standards. Some of the benefits are:

• Improved recruitment, retention, and diversity
• Reduced absence from workplace due to stress, burnout, anxiety, and depression
• Increases in performance
• Enhanced worker engagement and innovation
• Legal compliance

How do we go about measuring these psychosocial hazards and risks?

There are a range of valid and reliable tools for measuring psychosocial hazards, which may help with identifying areas of focus for your organisation. Assessing psychosocial hazards in your workplace could also involve a combination of assessment methods, including surveys, interviews, and focus groups. There are also wellbeing toolkits to help employees better understand psychosocial safety and the role it has in the workplace. Our consultants and psychologists can advise you on the most appropriate tool/s for your specific situation.

The role of Organisational Psychologists

Although there are tools available for businesses to utilize, it requires extensive knowledge to select and use them effectively. This is where organisational psychologists can help, drawing on their expertise in psychometric assessment and diagnostics to help you identify and understand key psychosocial risks for your organisation, and designing tailored interventions and solutions to mitigate harm and promote positive mental health outcomes. Organisational psychologists can also work with you to develop a business case, manage stakeholders, communicate with your workforce, manage the change, and train your leaders. In this way, they can help you put the new guidelines into practice in an evidence-based manner.

Summary and steps going forward

For over 20 years, our team at People Solutions have been dedicated to supporting businesses through Organisational Development initiatives aimed at improving both organisational and individual outcomes. As specialists in Organisational Psychology, we are invested in understanding the various factors that create mentally healthy workplaces, to allow us to best diagnose, support, and produce tailored wellbeing solutions for our clients. Our psychologists and consultants have worked with leaders across many key industries and are excited to share their wealth of experience with you.
If you are ready to get ahead of the curve and create a mentally healthy workplace within your business, please get in touch to find out how we can help.