Global ILO report reveals deadly impact of workplace stress and poor work design

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New Delhi: Around 8,40,000 people die each year due to the health risks related to psychological risks, such as working long hours, job insecurity, and harassment at the workplace, as per the new global report by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

The risks associated with work-related psychosocial issues were mainly cardiovascular diseases, mental disorders, and suicide.

Psychosocial risks at work increase health issues

The report found that risks account for nearly 45 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) lost each year, reflecting the loss of healthy life due to illness, stress, premature death, and disability and are estimated to result in economic losses of around 1.37 per cent of global GDP in the year 2026.

The report, The psychosocial working environment: Global developments and pathways for action, reveals how the way work is structured, managed, and organised is increasingly shaping employees’ safety and well-being. It cautions that unresolved psychosocial risks—such as excessive working hours, insecure jobs, high pressure paired with little autonomy, and incidents of bullying or harassment—can lead to damaging and unhealthy workplaces.

What is psychosocial work environment?

As per the report, the psychosocial work environment is the element of work and workplace interaction related to how jobs are designed, how work is organised and managed and the policies in broader aspects, practices and procedures that govern work. The elements individually or in combination affect a worker’s health and well-being, as well as the functioning of the organisation.

To better understand psychosocial risks, the report outlines three interconnected layers of the work environment that shape employees’ overall experience and well-being.

First, the job itself, including demands, wants, responsibilities, alignment with the worker’s skills, access to resources and the design of tasks in terms of meaning, variety and skill use.

The second examines how work is organised and managed, taking into account factors such as clarity of roles, expectations, level of autonomy, workload, pace of work, and the quality of supervision and support available to employees.

The third looks at broader workplace policies, practices, and systems that govern how work operates. This includes employment terms, working hours, how organisational changes are handled, digital monitoring, performance evaluation and rewards, occupational safety policies, measures to prevent workplace harassment and violence, and opportunities for employee participation and feedback.

The report highlights that psychosocial risks arise from these elements and can be prevented through an organisational approach that goes deep to understand the root causes. It also stresses the importance of integrating psychosocial risk management into occupational safety and health systems, supported by social dialogue between governments, employers, and workers.