Mental Health at Work

All workers have the right to a safe and healthy working environment, where both physical and mental health and well-being is protected and promoted.

Mental health at work has a huge impact on society and the world of work, with 12 billion working days lost every year due to depression and anxiety. Poor mental health can further influence physical health and can increase the risk of accidents at work.

Unsafe working environments create risk factors for mental health. These are known as psychosocial risks and may be related to any aspect of the design or management of work, including job demands and job control, workload and work pace, organizational culture, career development, job security, interpersonal relationship at work and home-work interface.

Violence and harassment at work, including bullying, also undermine both mental and physical health. So too does limited access to essential environmental services at work, unsafe equipment and poor physical working conditions.

Protecting and promoting mental health at work is about strengthening capacities, building awareness and providing opportunities for recognizing, preventing and acting early on mental health conditions at work.