The technical report presents findings from of a comparative analysis of responses to an ISSA (International Social Security Association) questionnaire from social security institutions in Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Morocco, Peru, Tunisia and Uruguay. As well as taking stock of the types and range of preventive health activities available to social security institutions, the project considered three topical areas: early disease prevention in the active population, including workplace initiatives; preventing illness among vulnerable groups; and laying the groundwork for more active and independent ageing. Each of these themes underscores a distinct but related set of priorities and challenges for addressing health risks at early stage and thereby reducing the human, financial and economic costs associated with poor health and accidents. These three topical priorities structure the latter part of the report: 2-social-security-for-healthy-societies.pdf
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NEW! - May 2013 - Global Healthy Workplace Awards Winners
On the 12th of April, the International Global Healthy Workplace Awards were given to businesses, which have developed exemplary workplace health programmes. The ceremony was part of the Global Healthy Workplace Summit, held on 10-12 April 2013 in London. Companies from 28 countries submitted workplace programmes for review by an international panel of public health experts from five continents. More information on the winners and ENWHP involvement...
NEW! - May 2013 - Working Well Survey
The fifth edition of the Working Well survey - a global survey of health promotion and workplace wellness strategies - investigated emerging trends in employer-sponsored health promotion and wellness programmes. More than 1300 organisations from 45 countries took part in the survey conducted by Buck Consultants. The survey found that employers identified "improving worker productivity and reducing presenteeism" as one of their top wellness programme objectives. More info and results...
NEW! - May 2013 - "Leadership and Coping" by Ghassan O. Qutob
A new research based book which examines the psychological resources of transformational leaders that help them to cope with business world uncertainty more effectively than other styles of less efficient leaders. The book discloses and advises practical principles to assist in the development of leadership cultivation programs. It also synthesizes a modified version of the Salutogenesis self assessment test that is applicable to measure coping in business contexts. More...
NEW! - May 2013 - Job insecurity or job reorganisation thought to be the most common cause of work-related stress
The 3rd edition of the pan-European opinion poll conducted by Ipsos MORI on behalf of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work reveals that:
- Half of the workers across Europe think work-related stress is common, and four in ten think it is not handled well at their workplace.
- Job insecurity or job reorganisation is thought to be the most common cause of work-related stress across Europe.
- There is low awareness of programmes or policies to make it easier for workers to continue working up to or beyond the retirement age, though the majority support their introduction. More...
NEW! - April 2013 - Blueprint offers recipe for better health at work
Corporations and academics have teamed up to back a blueprint to improve health literacy in the workplace, saying healthier lifestyles help employees and boost their productivity. The Blueprint for Business Action on Health Literacy is a free toolbox accessible to all companies and organisations aiming to make employees more health literate. More...
NEW! - April 2013 - Social security for healthy societies: Embracing a new mandate for prevention
NEW! - April 2013 - Promotion of mental health as a management task - E-learning tool for managers - News from NCO
The psyGA project (under the project leadership of BKK federal association, NCO Germany) offers practical support in the form of different materials and tools for companies of any size in all industries. The eLearning tool for the promotion of mental health provides easy to understand suggestions explaining how managers can protect their employees from excessive stress and stay healthy themselves. It sensitises superiors for perceiving stress signals and provides support for appropriate dealing with over-stressed employees. In addition, managers receive suggestions for dealing differently with own stress factors. The eLearning programme is aimed at the promotion of mental health by means of a health appropriate management style. It is a fact that stress can have a ?contagious? effect. This applies particularly to stress experienced by managers; employers or superiors often pass stress on to their employees. Accordingly, stress prevention always starts with the manager himself. The eLearning tool requires between 45 and 75 minutes - without or with three self-tests: http://psyga.info/elearningtool/. You can also download the tool.
(November 2012) Report commissioned by the European Agency for Health and Consumers (EAHC) under the EU Health Programme (2008-2013), to assess the potential contribution of mental health promotion and mental disorder prevention programmes to the EU-policy objectives of promoting the sustainability of health and social welfare systems, increasing the employment rate of the population and increasing the productivity of the economy. The study reviewed the existing scientific literature, case studies with Member States and workplaces, and an economic model in order to answer the following questions: past and expected future trends, economic impact of mental disorders, economic return on investment, role of health and social welfare systems, contribution of mainstreamed workplace mental health promotion?
NEW! - March 2013 - CEPH Public Health Training and Capacity Building
The centre for Environment and Population Health (CEPH) at Griffith University (Brisbane, Australia) hosts a public health education and training program, including a Master of Sciences in Public Health (International). The program provides students with the knowledge and skills to operate as public health professionals who are able to strategically address and manage current and emerging public health challenges. You can download the brochure here.
NEW! - March 2013 - News from INSHT (Spain) - News from NCO
Since 1996, INSHT as ENWHP National Contact Office has been active in promoting workplace health promotion at national level. In 2011, we launched our WHP website which is one of the most visited INSHT Portals. Since then 21 companies have endorsed the Luxembourg Declaration and 30 have applied for using WHP communication material "Gana en salud: 12 Temas - 12 Meses" (English leaflet). During 2013, a new initiative will be presented during the World Day for Safety and Health at Work event to be held in INSHT headquarters in Madrid the 25th of April. This new initiative, called "Empresas Seguras, Saludables y Sostenibles" (Safe, Healthy and Sustainable organizations) aims at recognizing models of good practice and excellence on WHP among Spanish organizations, fostering networking and supporting companies in designing and implementing WHP interventions. The scheme for accreditation will be published on the WHP website at the end of April. The responsible for the WHP line of action in INSHT also shares information through Twitter, Facebook and a Blog. You can download the English leaflet here.
NEW! - March 2013 - Joint Action Mental Health (2013-2015) Work package 'Promotion of mental health at the workplace' kicked off - News from NCO
The main objective of the Joint Action is to contribute to the promotion of mental health and well-being, the prevention of mental disorders and the improvement of care and social inclusion of people with mental disorders in Europe. The JA will build on the Commission's Green Paper on Improving the Mental Health of the Population in 2005 and the launch of the European Pact for Mental Health and Well-being in 2008.
The JA involves 28 countries. Working together in eight working packages (WP), the BKK federal association (Germany), as the delegated leader for 'Promotion of mental health at the workplace' (WP 6), was hosting its Kick-off meeting in Berlin on 25-26 February 2013.
Taking the occasion of the Kick-off meeting 13 representatives from the different participating countries, among them also members of the ENWHP, like Finland, France, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Belgium and Ireland, met in Berlin to discuss on major points concerning mental health in each country and develop a framework of action for the upcoming years of work. More information on website of Joint Action (under construction).
NEW! - January 2013 - First Global Healthy Workplace Awards - Open for Applications until February 10
The ENWHP encourages European employers to apply to the 1st Global Healthy Workplace Awards program. The Awards Summit will be held on April 10-12, 2013 in London. The Global Awards program follows the World Health Organization Healthy Workplace Model for Action and will recognize employers in three categories: small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), large enterprises (over 250 employess) and specialized programs (employers of all sizes who run a particularly innovative workplace health promotion program in some but not necessarily all of the components). The IAWHP serves on the advisory board. The application deadline is February 10, 2013. Learn more about the program.
NEW! - December 2012 - Closing conference PHWork: Save the date!
On 22-23 October 2013, the 9th ENWHP initiative 'Promoting Healthy Work for Employees with Chronic Illness - Public Health and Work (PHWork)' will be concluded with a large conference in Brussels. The aims of this conference are to raise further awareness about the impact of chronic diseases on the labour market and the social security and to exchange and improve knowledge and cooperation of all stakeholders about the possibilities to retain workers with a chronic disease, or facilitate their return to work. The conference will reunite stakeholders from public health and workplace health organisations, representatives from major public health and workplace health EU policy stakeholders. Workplace health strategies, as well as good practices and recommendations on job retention, early intervention or return to work will be presented to the public.
NEW! - 'PHWork partners support the World Diabetes Day'
14 November 2012
Since 1991, the 14th of November is marked 'World Diabetes Day' (WDD). The more than 346 million people that suffer from diabetes worldwide deserve to be in the picture for a day. But most of all, this day is important for raising global awareness on diabetes, its escalating rates and how to prevent this chronic illness. Without intervention the number of people with diabetes is likely to double by 2030. Consequently, there is also a strong argument for discussing diabetes in the context of workplace health promotion. Since the number of employees with type 2 diabetes in Europe is already high and further will increase dramatically in the coming years, especially when the retirement age increases, it is becoming a huge challenge for the workplaces to handle this new burden of disease.
The European Network for Workplace Health Promotion (ENWHP) works towards introducing effective workplace health practices, by creating a favourable culture and by providing guidance and a number of tools to employers, to help make a difference for employees. The current ENWHP initiative, called 'Promoting Healthy Work for People with Chronic Illness - Public Health and Work' (PHWork, 2011-2013), also concerns employees with diabetes. The objective of the initiative is to promote healthy, suitable work for those suffering the consequences of a chronic illness.
ENWHP has developed tools for employers to create a favourable culture and to help make a difference for employees with a chronic illness through a comprehensive health promotion strategy;
- A European guide to good practice presents a step-by-step action plan for employers;
- Models of good practice promote awareness and provide real life examples for employers to learn from;
- A European-wide campaign - also implemented at national level - is aiming to convince companies to put the guidelines at the heart of their human resources management policies and practices.
NEW! - November 2012 - 'Physical activity, obesity, nutrition and diabetes: interrelated challenges at the workplace' - ENWHP round table
The European Network for Workplace Health Promotion (ENWHP) organises a round table on 'Physical activity, obesity, nutrition and diabetes: interrelated challenges at the workplace' in Copenhagen (Denmark) on 12 November 2012.
ENWHP presents you with three lectures during this round table:
1. ActivatEU - the Social Innovation Lab for an Active and Healthy Europe
(Mr Steve Bell, NHS Health Scotland)
2. Diabetes as the hidden challenge for future WHP
(Dr Kjeld Poulsen, Steno Health Promotion Centre)
3. Nutrition, physical activity and obesity & the European network for Health-Enhancing Physical Activity
(Dr Joao Breda, World Health Organisation)
To register, please write an e-mail to nettie.vanderauwera@prevent.be before the 6th of November 2012. Attendance is free of charge.
NEW! - November 2012 - 'Travailler avec une maladie chronique / Working with a chronic illness' - News from NCO
On Thursday, December 13 of 2012, ANACT - the ENWHP's French NCO - organises a national dissemination event for the PH Work project in Paris, called 'Travailler avec une maladie chronique'. PH Work is the 9th ENWHP initiative on how to promote healthy work for employees with a chronic illness. The programme of the event can be downloaded here both in English and in French.
NEW! - November 2012 - 'Workers' participation and middle management's involvement' - News from NCO
INSHT - ENWHP's Spanish NCO - has developed material for increasing workers' awareness on 12 topics related to workplace health promotion. The material '12 temas - 12 meses' or '12 themes - 12 months' is made available for free in electronic format to interested companies that want to develop a campaign or go deeper into a specific topic fostering workers' participation and middle management's involvement. Each topic includes a poster accompanied with a short slogan for catching the workers' attention, cards for the individual with short and very practical explanations on the theme and a toolbox talks for middle managers in order to help them to lead discussions among workers and to guide them on finding opportunities for improvement. A user manual is made available to companies to facilitate the application of these materials in different situations.
NEW! - November 2012 - 'Relation contractors - subcontractors and impact on working conditions' - News from NCO
ANACT, the French Agency for the Amelioration of Working Conditions and ENWHP's NCO for France, managed a project with 6 other partners involved that started in December 2010 on 'Social regulation between contractors and subcontractors in industrial sector during restructuring times. How to improve employment and working conditions in industrial subcontracting?'. The project concerns itself with the social regulation (employment, development of qualifications, well-being at work) between contractors and subcontractors in the industrial sector in 5 countries (France, UK, Germany, Hungary and Spain). The project aims to investigate the different practices in these countries and to promote exchanges of experiences and good practice on this subject in Europe. A leaflet in English, including recommendations and information on the toolkit, can be consulted here.
NEW! - November 2012 - 'A model for Company self-assessment of CSR performance' - News from NCO
INAIL - our NCO for Italy - has been working on a three-year project to set up a model for Company self-assessment of Corporate Social Responsibility performance (CSR). INAIL collaborated with QUINN on this project. The resulting model builds on the culture of self-assessment for enterprises and is structured in multi-levels. The last level includes questions addressed to the SMEs.You can read the complete description of this model below.
NEW! - November 2012 - 'The Romtens Foundation (Romania): current projects and upcoming events' - News from NCO
One of the projects the Romtens Foundation is involved in, concerning workplace health promotion, is titled 'The EWA project: European Workplaces and Alcohol'. The project is financed by the EU Public Health Programme 2008-2013 and addresses the issue of alcohol consumption and its effects on the workplace. More than 17 European organizations work together on this project, which includes research, on-the-field interventions and strategic work. Another project of our Romanian NCO, 'The PSCR project: Developing human resources in rural communities', aims at introducing the concepts of workplace health promotion, community development and partnerships for health within 19 communes (rural localities comprised of several villages) from Romania.
Upcoming events (co-) organised by the Romtens Foundation are the 13th Summer School of the European Association of Schools of Occupational Medicine (EASOM) - this year's theme is Workplace Health Promotion - and a seminar in Bucharest on 'The European Social Fund and its role in supporting public health projects: the European experience' together with the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA). A past seminar on 'Class and e-learning in occupational medicine for undergraduate students' concluded the EMUTOM (the European Module for Undergraduate Teaching of Occupational Medicine) project. A more extensive description of the listed projects and events by the Romtens Foundation, is available below.
NEW! - October 2012 - 'Webinars on Mental Health Promotion' - Survey
The European Network for Mental Health Promotion (ENMHP) are about to offer a new service to members and non-members ? Webinars on Mental Health Promotion (MHP) and related topics. Remote training needs to be supplemented by a more personal approach and webinars offer a potential solution in that regard.
The ENMHP would like to assess its audience's level of interest in taking part in webinars. If you could complete the questionnaire (10 mins) by 16 November 2012, it will help them to design webinars that will meet your needs to the maximum extent possible.
NEW! - October 2012 - 'WORK - Continuities and Disruptions in Modern Life' - Call for papers
A call for papers was issued for the First International Interdisciplinary Conference on Research on Work, called 'WORK?Continuities and Disruptions in Modern Life'. The aim of the conference is to bring together researchers with different disciplinary backgrounds interested in any aspect of work and working life.
Date of the conference: 21-23 August 2013, Venue: University of Turku, Turku School of Economics, Finland. Abstract submissions by: 15 January 2013 - Please submit a research paper and/or presentation on the many aspects of work, working life and work systems. Accepted papers will be presented as either oral presentations or posters and will appear in the conference proceedings. The topics of interest are liste on the website of the conference.
NEW! - August 2012 - 'Healthy ageing in a working society' - WDPI 2012 Conference
On 22-24 October 2012, the second Scientific Conference on Work Disability Prevention and Integration (WDPI) will take place at the University Medical Center in Groningen (the Netherlands). The theme of the conference is 'Healthy ageing in a working society' and the following topics will be addressed:
- From disability to ability
- Early detection and work disability prevention
- Towards a sustainable working life
WDPI 2012 is a conference for research on preventing work disability and promoting safe and sustained return to work across a range of conditions. It is organized to provide a unique opportunity for interdisciplinary and international exchange of ideas on preventing work disability.
The conference includes oral sessions on mental disorders, socio-political & economic challenges, qualitative RTW-studies, musculoskeletal disorders, healthy ageing at work... and topical sessions on cancer and work, disability evaluation towards ability, facilitating self-management of chronic disorders in the workplace...
For more information on the program, keynote speakers, registration costs, venue etc. check out the website of the University Medical Center in Groningen.
New! - August 2012 - Open Days debate 'Healthy Ageing: Acting for innovation at regional and local level'
A consortium of six European regions - including Doubs Department (FR), Lodzkie Region (PL), Free State of Saxony (DE), Region of Southern Denmark (DK), Limousin Region (FR) and Tampere City (FI) - organises an Open Days debate on healthy ageing, inspired by the 'European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations 2012'.
The Open Days event will take place on the 9th of October 2012 in Brussels and is divided into two parts: 1) The debate will bring together regional and local representatives from across Europe to discuss innovative policy solutions to face the challenge of healthy ageing launching the new Covenant of Mayors on Demographic Change. 2) A brokerage event will follow the debate bringing together practitioners from public authorities, universities and research organizations and business representatives.
For more information and to sign up, go to www.opendays.europa.eu
NEW! - August 2012 - Global Survey on Health Promotion and Workplace Wellness Strategies - EXTENDED TO AUGUST 31
Extra incentive: if one country gets more than 60 responses a special country report will be prepared free of charge.
The 2012 Global Survey on Health Promotion and Workplace Wellness Strategies is now open for participation (deadline 30th of July - extended to 31st of August)! The ENWHP strongly encourages employers to complete the 5th edition of this survey! It is designed to gain insight into how employers around the world implement and evaluate strategic wellness and health promotion initiatives. The survey is open to employers of every size in all industries and regions of the world. Last edition included responses from more than 1,200 employers in 45 countries.
NEW! - August 2012 - PEROSH paper on sustainable workplaces of the future
PEROSH, the Partnership for European Research in Occupational Safety and Health, has published an interesting new paper on 'Sustainable workplaces of the future - European Research Challenges for Occupational Safety and Health'. Via a consultation process, the PEROSH members identified the major trends and future challenges in the world of work and their impact on OSH. They also analysed future research needs, solutions and deliverables that will be necessary in the long run to ensure a healthy working life for Europe's workforce. The consultation of the PEROSH member institutes led to the prioritisation of seven main research challenges that are significantly prevalent and innovative in terms of preventing ill health and occupational accidents.
1. Sustainable employability to prolong working life
2. Disability prevention and reintegration
3. Psychosocial well-being in a sustainable working organisation
4. Multifactorial genesis of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
5. New technologies as a field of action for OSH
6. Occupational risks related to engineered nanomaterials (ENM)
7. Safety culture to prevent occupational accidents
Please find the full paper and a presentation below. You can also find more information on this new paper on the website of PERSOSH.
NEW! - July 2012 - Achievements EU Commission in the field of health
A new brochure about recent achievements of the Commission in the field of health is now available online: 'Health in the EU - What is in it for you? Recent achievements'.
It showcases what the EU has done to improve people's health status. The actions of particular interest for the ENWHP are the ones concerning the 3rd Multi-Annual EU Health Programme (2014-2020), the risk factors of chronic diseases, and active and healthy ageing.
NEW! - July 2012 - Workers' Health Education, a database with learning materials for workers' health
Worker's Health Education is an initiative aiming to stimulate and support education and training in basic occupational safety and health knowledge and skills all over the world. The website was officially launched in March 2012 and contains good quality learning materials - in general, free of charge. It also has a Forum, via which users can exchange questions and all kind of basic services, experiences, plans, programs, curricula etc. You can also subscribe to the Workers' Health Education - newsletter.
NEW! - June 2012 - Global Survey on Health Promotion and Workplace Wellness Strategies
The 2012 Global Survey on Health Promotion and Workplace Wellness Strategies is now open for participation (deadline 30th of July)! The ENWHP strongly encourages employers to complete the 5th edition of this survey! It is designed to gain insight into how employers around the world implement and evaluate strategic wellness and health promotion initiatives. The survey is open to employers of every size in all industries and regions of the world. Last edition included responses from more than 1,200 employers in 45 countries.
