The Global Commission on the Future of Work has highlighted that new forces are transforming the world of work by changing who works, when and for how long, and how work is organised and managed. These are driven by globalisation and population shifts; digitalisation, automation, robotisation and AI; climate change; and conflicts and security threats. Within this complex global context, forecasts on the future of work unequivocally recognise the psychosocial work environment as the number-one priority. The psychosocial work environment refers to work organisation, design and management and the social context at work and includes ten key dimensions: organisational culture and function; job content; workload and work pace; work schedule; control/autonomy at work; environment and equipment; interpersonal relationships at work; role in the organisation; career development; and the home-work interface. These are associated with the health and well-being of workers and sustainable work. Well-being refers not only to physical but also mental and social health. Sustainable work means achieving living and working conditions that support people in engaging in and remaining in work throughout an extended working life. Sustainable work and well-being in the future cannot be achieved unless risks associated with new forms of employment, and the psychosocial work environment (or work-related psychosocial risks) are proactively addressed. Examples of psychosocial risks include: • a poor psychosocial safety climate (PSC, i.e., the extent to which an organisation prioritises mental health and psychosocial risks at work, and consults with workers to address them) • excessively demanding work and/or not enough time to complete tasks • conflicting demands and a lack of clarity over the worker’s role, or a mismatch between the demands of the job and the worker’s competencies • a lack of involvement in making decisions that affect the worker and a lack of influence over the way the job is done • working alone, especially when dealing with members of the public and clients, and/or being subjected to violence from a third party • a lack of support from management and colleagues, and poor interpersonal relationships • psychological or sexual harassment and bullying in the workplace – the victimising, humiliating, undermining or threatening behaviour of supervisors or colleagues • an unjust distribution of work, rewards, promotions or career opportunities • ineffective communication, poorly managed organisational change and job insecurity • difficulties in combining commitments at work and at home. PSYCHOSOCIAL RISKS IN THE FUTURE OF WORK Future of work studies indicate these risks will increase and have the potential to lead to adverse outcomes. For example, since the Covid-19 pandemic there has been an acceleration of remote and virtual work. With the ability to work from anywhere, and many workers doing so from home, the boundaries between work and private life become blurred. As a result, workers may work longer hours and have difficulty disengaging from work, feeling physically and emotionally exhausted, especially where there is lack of appropriate support. Many workers may exhibit online addiction (wanting to always be “on”). Additionally, remote virtual work from home may result in lack of social 28 |
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