Factsheets
Available in all the official languages of the EU, Factsheets provide brief introductions to the Agency and to our activities. Many focus on specific concerns in occupational health and safety, or on specific sectors or groups of workers. They set out in a concise, accessible way, on a single sheet, the main health and safety risks, what can be done about them, who is responsible for dealing with them, and where to find out more.
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- Four out of five European residents say that good health is crucial for their quality of life. Chronic disease has a major impact on quality of life. Many chronic diseases – e.g. heart diseases, type 2 diabetes, and cancer – can be largely prevented by a healthy lifestyle. These changes include improving the diet, enhancing physical fitness, and quitting smoking. Workplace Health Promotion means more than simply meeting the legal requirements for health and safety. It includes: improving the way work is organised; improving the working environment; encouraging employees to get involved in healthy activities; encouraging personal development.
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- Workplace health promotion (WHP) is the combined effort of employers, employees and society to improve the health and well-being of people at work. This is achieved through a combination of: improving the work organisation and working environment, promoting the participation of workers in healthy activities, enabling healthy choices, and encouraging personal development. Why invest in WHP? How to implement WHP?
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- Organisations deal with occupational safety and health (OSH) in different ways. Some have little expertise in OSH and simply react to occupational accidents, work-related diseases and absenteeism as they arise. Others strive to manage OSH more systematically and proactively by mainstreaming OSH into the organisation’s overall management. A report aimed at providing information on how OSH can be incorporated into general business management is summarized in Factsheet 92. The report comprises a literature review, an overview of related policies and examples of good practice.
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- Future engineers, architects, medical professionals and business administrators and managers will all need to take account of occupational safety and health (OSH) aspects in their working lives. This report and the cases in it demonstrate that there are more challenges to integrating OSH into university-level education compared with other levels of education. However, the cases also show that steps are being taken to mainstream OSH into university education in a variety of disciplines and in a variety of ways.
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- Occupational diseases and work-related health problems (such as asbestosis, cancer, hearing problems, and musculoskeletal disorders) are prevalent among workers involved in maintenance activities. Maintenance workers are also at risk of all types of accidents. EUROSTAT data from five EU countries indicate that at least 15-20% of all accidents and 10-15% of all fatal accidents are related to maintenance operations (in 2006). It is essential to implement appropriate risk assessment procedures for maintenance operations, as well as employing adequate preventive measures to ensure the safety and health of workers involved in maintenance activities.
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- Maintenance is carried out in every workplace and in all industry sectors. Considering the wide range of hazards and risks associated with maintenance, it may be necessary to include it in the comprehensive management system of the company. Allocating sufficient time and resources, ensuring training and competence of the maintenance staff, putting in place safe systems of work based on an appropriate risk assessment, effective communication between production and maintenance staff are key issues.
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- Maintenance is carried out in every workplace and in all industry sectors. It is included in the everyday duties of most workers, not just maintenance technicians and engineers. Workers involved in maintenance operations are exposed to many hazards; therefore the employer must conduct a risk assessment for the operation, and involve workers in this process. The results of the risk assessment should be communicated to everybody concerned. Safe systems of work need to be followed even when there is time pressure.
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- Diversity and diversity management in the workplace are important issues in occupational safety and health today. However, diversity has seldom been studied from the perspective of risk assessment. Practical risk assessment tools that take into account the specific risks faced, for instance by people with disabilities, migrant workers, older workers, women and temporary workers, are still rare.
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- Cleaning is carried out in every workplace. The cleaning industry itself is a growing sector, as it is a service that is increasingly being put out to tender. While there are some very large cleaning contractors, the sector is dominated by small businesses, many of which employ fewer than 10 workers. Cleaning is an essential task, and one that when done well can reduce both risks to workers’ safety and health and costs to the business, for example by extending the life of workplace equipment and furnishings, and keeping floor surfaces in good condition. In some industries such as the food and catering sectors poor cleaning can cause a business to fail.
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- Risk assessment is the basis for successful health and safety management, and the key to reducing work-related accidents and occupational diseases. If implemented well, it can improve not only workplace safety and health, but business performance in general. The report supports the European ‘healthy workplaces’ campaign 2008/09 on risk assessment by providing information on successful interventions in the workplace to eliminate or substantially reduce risks. The report is aimed at those who are responsible for carrying out risk assessments in the workplace and for making decisions on preventive measures.
