Conference on mental health and work (30-31 January)
Recent crises have had an impact on the moral of European citizens. So much so, that the recent COVID crisis has resulted in another one: a crisis in mental health.
The European Commission published a statement in 2023 on their comprehensive approach to mental health, which should support Member States and stakeholders in their actions to address challenges in this area. The Commission also stressed that mental health should be taken as seriously as physical health, and that psychosocial risks at work need to be combatted.
The working world has not been left unaffected by the health crisis. A 2022 survey conducted by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work has revealed that more than 4 out of 10 workers (44%) active in the European Union have noted that they experience more stress at work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Exposure to psychosocial risks at work has a severe impact on workers’ mental and physical health, causing issues ranging from depression to cardiovascular diseases. The mental health problems resulting from these psychosocial risks can be seen as a preventable burden, not only on workers and their families, but also on businesses and society as a whole.
As in the context of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, European experts and policymakers were brought together in Brussels for a conference on mental health and work.
The first day focused on primary prevention and creating healthy workplaces by implementing measures that prevent workers from being exposed to psychosocial risks at work.
The second day focused on secondary and tertiary prevention, or keeping people at work by detecting and addressing the early signs of illbeing in workers and helping them return to work after sick leave.
Read the summary of the conference (PDF, 235.47 KB) and watch the video.
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Or view the media at https://youtu.be/vXovzsoyFbAPresentations
Day 1:
- Presentation - The avoidable burden of depression and cardiovascular disease attributable to psychosocial risks in the EU - Dr. Hélène Sultan-Taïeb (PDF, 5.16 MB)
- Article - Update of the fractions of cardiovascular diseases and mental
disorders attributable to psychosocial work factors in Europe - Dr. Hélène Sultan-Taïeb (PDF, 760.18 KB) - Article - Burden of cardiovascular diseases and depression attributable to psychosocial work exposures in 28 European countries - Dr. Hélène Sultan-Taïeb (PDF, 2.29 MB)
- Presentation - Psychosocial Risks at Work in the Digital Age - William Cockburn (PDF, 1.66 MB)
- Presentation - Supporting mental health at work: the role of psychosocial risks and job quality - Agnès Parent-Thirion (PDF, 1.26 MB)
- Presentation - Conclusions of the EU Council on "Precarious Work and Mental Health" - Mercedes Tejedor (PDF, 1.9 MB)
- Presentation parallel session - Job resources-demands in times of crisis - Dr. Evangelia Demerouti (PDF, 1.69 MB)
- Presentation parallel session - Towards sustainable hybrid work? Proximity, disembodied work(place) and meaningful work - Dr. Michel Ajzen (PDF, 636.96 KB)
- Presentation parallel session - Crises managers in continuous operation - Dr. Meinald Thielsch (PDF, 2.71 MB)
- Presentation parallel session - Fundamental legal framework in the EU and role of the law - Dr. Loïc Lerouge (PDF, 1.12 MB)
- Presentation parallel session - Possible key elements for a directive on psychosocial risks - Godelieve Ponnet (PDF, 628.05 KB)
- Presentation parallel session - Presentation of joint initiatives to tackle PSR at work by unions and employers: from the European hospital and healthcare sector - Dr. Adam Rogalewski (PDF, 1.02 MB)
- Presentation parallel session - Presentation of joint initiatives to tackle PSR at work by unions and employers: from the European construction sector - Rolf Gehring (EFBWW) and Léna Guyon (PDF, 384.5 KB)
- Presentation parallel session - Recommendations on the primary prevention of burnout - Rudi Delarue (PDF, 667.85 KB)
Day 2:
- Presentation parallel session - STAY at work: secondary prevention from an EU perspective - Caroline Dendoncker, Prof. Dr. Salla Toppinen, Prof. Dr. Olivier Torres (PDF, 1.53 MB)
- Presentation parallel session - RETURN to work: Good practices with a focus on IPS from an EU-perspective - Prof. Em. Dr. Chantal Van Audenhove (PDF, 1.1 MB)
- Presentation round table - An integrated approach of mental health and further action at European Level - Moderator: Chantal Van Audenhove (PDF, 886.83 KB)