HEALTHATWORK · An inquiry into the health and safety at work; a European Union perspective

This proposal aims to review current knowledge and issues related to the economic impact of health at work, to assemble, organise, analyse and synthesise data from national projects and surveys, and to recommend future actions for research and policy development aiming at improving health and safety at work in a changing labour market environment in the European Union in an era of ageing populations, feminised labour markets and increased incidence of Small and Medium Enterprices (SMEs). This is achieved through co-ordinated reviews, the development of common databases regarding indicators of health and safety at work in the participant countries (including the incidence of accidents and illnesses of work, the incidence of absenteeism, and early retirement due to accidents/illnesses at work,) and the associated GIS analysis capability. In addition, a pilot study aiming at designing appropriate data collection protocols is designed to explore the appropriateness of small scale surveys, using purpose-build questionnaire, to determine the preference setting of both employers and employees with regard to health and safety at work and to highlight the cost and benefits of investing in improving the health and safety at work. The above lead to a series of co-ordination meetings and workshops at which the status of health and safety at work, its repercussions for the quality of work and its effects on Europe’s competitiveness are reviewed and studied. A comparative EU-wide assessment of the structure and dynamics of the health and safety at work is carried out. Policy recommendations aiming at improving the health and safety at work in the context of changing labour market environment are detailed with particular reference to the ageing population, the feminisation of the labour markets and the increased incidence of SMEs.