7.2.2023
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
C 47/65 Tuesday 5 July 2022
— having regard to the report of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) of 7 December 2020 entitled ‘Preventing musculoskeletal disorders in a diverse workforce: risk factors for women, migrants and LGBTI workers’, — having regard to the EU-OSHA report of 7 October 2011 entitled ‘Mental health promotion in the workplace — a good practice report’, — having regard to the EU-OSHA report of 22 October 2021 entitled ‘Telework and health risks in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: evidence from the field and policy implications’, — having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 12 December 2012 entitled ‘The European Year of Mental Health — Better work, better quality of life’ (15), — having regard to the opinion of the Commission Expert Panel on Effective Ways of Investing in Health of 23 June 2021 on supporting the mental health of the health workforce and other essential workers’, — having regard to the joint EU-OSHA and Eurofound report of 13 October 2014 entitled ‘Psychosocial risks in Europe: prevalence and strategies for prevention’, — having regard to the Willis Towers Watson 2021 Employee Experience Survey, — having regard to the petitions submitted to the Committee on Petitions, for instance Nos 0956/2018 and 1186/2018, — having regard to Rule 54 of its Rules of Procedure, — having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A9-0184/2022), A. whereas the right to physical and mental health is a fundamental human right and whereas every human being is entitled to the highest attainable standard of health; whereas the WHO defines mental health as ‘a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realise their abilities, learn well and work well, and contribute to their community’ (16); whereas mental health is also linked to other fundamental rights such as the right to human dignity, as enshrined in Article 1 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, and the right to the integrity of the person, including mental integrity, as enshrined in Article 3 of the Charter; B. whereas research shows that the COVID-19 pandemic has shaped organisational and managerial practices and changed working conditions for many workers in Europe, with consequences for working time, well-being and the physical environment of the workplace; whereas extraordinary demands have been placed on healthcare and essential workers; whereas these workers have had to cope with a demanding work environment, a lack of protection and fears for their safety, which has had a negative psychological impact; whereas understanding mental health issues in the workplace not only means being cognisant of mental disorders in line with the diagnostic criteria of the International Classification of Diseases for Mortality and Morbidity Statistics (e.g. depression) (17), but also seeking to promote well-being, avoiding misunderstanding and stigmatisation and devising and implementing the right measures and treatment to manage those disorders (18); C. whereas the pandemic unleashed a sharp increase in care responsibilities in combination with work, which disproportionately affected women and widened the gender disparity in unpaid care; whereas this had a negative impact on the mental health of people with care responsibilities, as many workers had to cope with much more stress by taking on the increased care responsibilities of home-schooling and childcare during lockdown or by providing informal care or performing any other kind of work for dependent relatives;
(15) (16) (17) (18)
OJ C 44, 15.2.2013, p. 36.
WHO fact sheet, Mental Health: strengthening our response, 17 June 2022.
International Classification of Diseases for Mortality and Morbidity Statistics, ‘Problems associated with employment or unemployment’.
List of mental disorders as per WHO fact sheet on mental disorders, 8 June 2022.