Aligning Perspectives on Health, Safety and Well-Being Aditya Jain Stavroula Leka Gerard I. J. M. Zwetsloot Managing Health, Safety and Well-Being Ethics, Responsibility and Sustainability Aligning Perspectives on Health, Safety and Well-Being Series editors Stavroula Leka, Centre for Organizational Health and Development, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK Aditya Jain, Nottingham University Business School and Centre for Organizational Health and Development, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK Gerard Zwetsloot, Gerard Zwetsloot Research & Consultancy, Amsterdam, The Netherlands and Centre for Organizational Health and Development, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK Raising awareness of the interdisciplinary and complementary relationship of different research perspectives on health, safety and well-being is the main aim of the book series Aligning Perspectives on Health, Safety and Well-being. Combined research approaches on health, safety and well-being are becoming more and more popular in several research disciplines across and between the social, behavioural and medical sciences. Therefore, Aligning Perspectives on Health, Safety and Well- being stimulates the publication of interdisciplinary approaches to the promotion of health, safety and well-being. Recognizing a need within societies and workplaces for more integrated approaches to problem solving, the series caters to the notion that most innovation stems from combining knowledge and research results from related but so far separated areas. Volumes will be edited by expert authors and editors and will contain contributions from different disciplines. All authors, and especially volume editors are encouraged to engage in developing more robust theoretical models that can be applied in actual practice and lead to policy development. Editorial Board: Professor Johannes Siegrist, University of Dusseldorf, Germany Professor Peter Chen, University of South Australia Professor Katherine Lippel, University of Ottawa, Canada Professor Nicholas Ashford, MIT, USA, Dr Steve Sauter, NIOSH, USA, Dr Peter Hasle, Aalborg University, Denmark More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/10757 Aditya Jain • Stavroula Leka Gerard I.J.M. Zwetsloot Managing Health, Safety and Well-Being Ethics, Responsibility and Sustainability Aditya Jain Stavroula Leka Nottingham University Business School and Centre for Organizational Health and Centre for Organizational Health and Development Development University of Nottingham University of Nottingham Nottingham, UK Nottingham, UK Gerard I.J.M. Zwetsloot Gerard Zwetsloot Research & Consultancy Amsterdam, The Netherlands Centre for Organizational Health and Development University of Nottingham Nottingham, UK ISSN 2213-0497 ISSN 2213-0470 (electronic) Aligning Perspectives on Health, Safety and Well-Being ISBN 978-94-024-1259-8 ISBN 978-94-024-1261-1 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1261-1 Library of Congress Control Number: 2018930017 © Springer Science+Business Media B.V., part of Springer Nature 2018 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Science+Business Media B.V. part of Springer Nature. The registered company address is: Van Godewijckstraat 30, 3311 GX Dordrecht, The Netherlands Foreword In the last decades, the world of work has faced deep changes due to numerous social, economic and technological factors. The demographic change, resulting from the general increase of the population’s life expectancy, has led to a progressive ageing of the working population, with an increase in the share of the population aged between 55 and 65 years still actively involved in the work market at global level. Ageing of the workforce is also sup- ported by economic factors which, in recent years, let to numerous social security reforms, with a gradual increase in the retirement age. Also technological innovation has had significant effects on the world of work. In fact, the introduction of new work processes and emerging risks led to the need to rethink OSH management models, in order to allow a prolonged working life in good health, taking into account the protection of workers’ health and overall well- being while ensuring maintenance of companies’ productivity. The present book is certainly able to give a satisfactory answer to the challenges that occupational health and safety professionals as well as policy makers are fac- ing. The paradigm shift from the traditional occupational safety and health manage- ment to the implementation of practices that combine safety and health with well-being concepts will certainly support improved functioning and sustainable development of workplaces, with a positive impact on the society at large as well. Acknowledging the interdisciplinarity and complementarity of perspectives of the different stakeholders involved, this book aims at stimulating dialogue among key experts from different disciplines on the development of robust theoretical mod- els that can be applied in practice and lead to a more comprehensive policy development. The book explores the different ways in which good health, safety and well- being (HSW) practices can benefit businesses, not only in terms of company’s pro- ductivity but also within the larger scope of good employment practices, which may include integration of health, safety and well-being into human resources manage- ment, and human rights and social responsibility policies. v vi Foreword The authors, also thanks to their well-combined fields of expertise, address the issue in a structured way offering a comprehensive overview that ranges from the state of the art of HSW at the workplace to the business case. An in-depth analysis of needs, both in terms of practical implementation and policy, allows identifying the different levels of intervention through which research- ers, HSW professionals/practitioners and policy makers can implement the model in compliance with its multidisciplinary characteristics and ethical principles devel- oped under international standards. Ethics is a key element of responsible business practices, and the potential of an approach to the promotion of HSW based on human rights dimension as well as on ethical principles, particularly in relation to international operations and global sup- ply chains, is well explored across the book. The book also offers good examples of risk management systems, indicators, tools, internal regulations and guidance to mainstream HSW into business opera- tions and practices and the best ways to coordinate them for the achievement of key targets and outcomes. I have no doubt that this book is an invaluable contribution to the scientific knowledge in this field. Secretary General, Sergio Iavicoli International Commission on Occupational Health Milan, Italy Preface Health, safety and well-being (HSW) are at the core of workplace and societal func- tioning and development. However, the world of work is changing rapidly, under the influence of rapid technological developments (e.g. ICT), increasing global compe- tition, major demographic changes (including ageing and migration) and new gov- ernmental policies (e.g. soft law). As a result, the current state of the art indicates that approaches that have been used to promote HSW have had limited results. It is therefore time to critically review key perspectives to HSW promotion in the work- place and work towards their alignment if progress is to be achieved in a sustainable way. The promotion of HSW is an important topic in several fields of research. Therefore, raising awareness of the interdisciplinarity and complementarity of dif- ferent perspectives and synergies that can be enhanced in policy, research and prac- tice is the main focus of this book. In doing so, it aims to stimulate dialogue among key experts from different disciplines on the development of more robust theoretical models that can be applied in practice and lead to policy development. Most of the traditional policies and methods for dealing with HSW at work were developed and tested in a much less dynamic era and have had only limited results in the present time of turbulence and increased complexity. As a result, HSW poli- cies and management approaches are often lagging behind the realities in the work- place. The book aims to discuss how alignment of perspectives can be achieved by referring to HSW integrated approaches that go beyond fragmented efforts in the respective silos of health, safety and well-being, which are still dominant in the world of science and in practice. That is a necessary step to dealing adequately with the present challenges, before getting ‘buy-in’ by leaders in business or policymaking. A key challenge is to get HSW higher on the agenda of senior management, and to develop approaches that generate ‘double dividends’: being good for HSW but also being good for business. Likewise, at the policy level it is important to develop approaches that are good for HSW at work, but also good for employment and qual- ity of work, public health, innovation or economic and social development. vii viii Preface Another key challenge is to tune the dynamics of HSW management and policies with today’s dynamics of changes in organizations and society. This requires orga- nizations to deal proactively with HSW and to develop an organizational culture that is conducive for HSW, requiring HSW leadership as well as the adoption and promotion of HSW-related values and practices that are supported by key stake- holders including, of course, managers and workers. These challenges require a strategic reorientation in HSW, whereby knowledge is no longer focused only on HSW risks and their management but is increasingly also focused on a broad array of opportunities for synergies with areas that have traditionally not been addressed in HSW (or were only regarded as boundary situa- tions). In this book opportunities for such synergies are therefore the centre of focus in several chapters on the business case for HSW, responsible and ethical business practices relevant for HSW and mainstreaming HSW. The book explores the many ways in which good business and good HSW can go together, including embedding HSW in strategic management, evaluating organiza- tional interventions and integrating HSW into the planning and control cycle of organizations and performance management, or into workplace innovations, human resource management and human rights and social responsibility policies. Besides the ‘harder’ approaches (e.g. planning and programmes), also ‘softer’ approaches (e.g. integrating HSW into values, culture and leadership) come to the fore. For HSW to become an opportunity for major policy and business agendas, new and often multidisciplinary types of research are required to deliver the necessary evi- dence to support decision-making. Mixed-method approaches in research, taking into account the various perspectives of key stakeholders in HSW (beyond the tra- ditional tripartite stakeholders and HSW experts), should be implemented. The introductory chapter will present a review of the current state of the art in relation to HSW at work. The chapter will outline key issues in relation to HSW in the contemporary world and will discuss new and emerging risks and several related outcomes. At the same time, the various perspectives on HSW that have been devel- oped over the years will be outlined, highlighting synergies. Following up from the first chapter, the second chapter will outline approaches that have been used to address identified priorities at the policy level, including hard (obligatory) and soft (voluntary) approaches. The chapter will highlight the merits and challenges of these approaches and identify gaps in practice. It will also high- light new integrated approaches and present examples aiming at the development of healthy workplaces, HSW value-based strategies and promoting job quality. Chapter 3 will more specifically explore the business case to the promotion of HSW as this is recognized as a key priority in current literature. There is a wealth of data demonstrating that in the long term, the most successful and competitive com- panies are those that have the best health and safety records and the most physically and mentally healthy and satisfied workers. Business responsibility and sustainability will be the focus on Chapter 4. Businesses are required to assume a more responsible role towards all their stake- holders. The chapter will consider the extent to which responsible business practice initiatives take HSW into consideration and will identify existing gaps. This chapter Preface ix will also highlight the link between responsible business practices and sustainability. Key in the area of business responsibility is ethics and a human rights dimension, particularly in relation to international operations and global supply chains. Chapter 5 will therefore build on Chapter 4 and discuss the potential of a human rights-based approach to the promotion of HSW in light of developments at policy level linking HSW explicitly to the human rights agenda. Chapter 6 will then focus on mainstreaming HSW in business operations and practices. Different avenues for mainstreaming will be discussed including the use of risk management systems, indicators, tools, internal regulations and guidance. Although such avenues are common in everyday business practice, they are rarely co-ordinated to achieve key targets and outcomes. Business values should be used as the starting point for businesses to mainstream key objectives. This chapter will critically evaluate the different avenues that have been used and identify gaps that can be addressed to achieve desired outcomes sustainably. The final chapter of this book will revisit the evidence, perspectives and approaches presented in the previous chapters and draw out key messages for the future. It will address existing needs both in policy and practice in order to align perspectives and address HSW in its totality and in a multi- and interdisciplinary manner. The chapter will discuss how the complementarity and synergies among different perspectives can be enhanced in research and practice. It will also high- light how aligning perspectives and mainstreaming HSW can be achieved in policy- making and at the organizational context to promote sustainability. Finally, important actions needed by policymakers, managers, workers, HSW professionals/practitio- ners and researchers will be highlighted, and key directions for the future in terms of research and practice will be identified. HSW needs to come on equal terms with economics, public health and business ethics. It needs to develop more strategically into being an area that is creating syn- ergies with the dominant areas mentioned, but can also benefit from synergies stem- ming from developments in these related dominant areas. This will require a reorientation of (parts of) the HSW (policy, research and practice) community in order to be able to realize (and provide evidence of) the opportunities for improving HSW in the new era. The authors hope to contribute to these developments with this book and to inspire the readers to also explore the challenges for research, policy- making and management associated with the developments and opportunities described. Nottingham, UK Aditya Jain Nottingham, UK Stavroula Leka Amsterdam, The Netherlands Gerard I.J.M. Zwetsloot