Upskilling to better manage psychosocial risk in the workplace
There’s also an equity component – reducing blame on individuals for stress that is caused by a workplace environment or culture.
Research shows that while many organisations are trying to do the right thing, they are often focusing on individual strategies instead of broader ones, says UNSW associate professor Carlo Caponecchia.
“Those strategies are often about helping individuals get better at dealing with the things that can harm them at work,” he says. “But we don’t do that for any other hazard in the workplace.”
Workplaces don’t train employees to desensitise themselves to loud noises or breathe differently to avoid toxic dust, he adds, and the same is true for managing psychosocial risks.
Caponecchia is a member of the Standards Australia Committee which contributed to the development of the Australian and International Standard on psychosocial risks (AS/ISO45003:2021). This standard informs and complements the recent changes to regulations and guidance in Australia.
“When people get injured in this way, they are very costly injuries,” he says. “It can take a long, long time to rehabilitate, and the experience of people returning to work after a psychological injury can be really quite poor.”
How organisations can do better
To better manage psychosocial risk, SafeWork NSW’s Casey recommends organisations develop a strong psychosocial safety climate.
“Leadership commitment to mental health is key,” she says.
Caponecchia says that how work is designed is critical. That includes everything from what tasks workers have to do, how they are supervised, the physical environment they work in, and the processes governing their workflows.
UNSW associate professor Carlo Caponecchia.
“That’s not to say that we shouldn’t do any of those individual strategies,” he says. “It’s just that they shouldn’t be the first port of call, or the only thing that we’re doing.”
Casey recommends integrating risk management into business strategy by making it a core part of human resources and health policies. Encouraging feedback from employees can help identify risks early and she advocates for leaders being properly equipped with the skills they need to recognise and address psychosocial risks.
Creating change through upskilling
As well as contributing to legal reform in this area, Caponecchia designed and leads a self-paced online course offered by UNSW Sydney, Managing Psychosocial Risks at Work. The course teaches participants how to understand and address psychosocial risks in their workplaces.
“We focus on the redesign of work,” he says. “[It’s about] work redesign strategies for controlling those risks, and we give people an opportunity to have some practice at developing those redesign strategies in ways that are relevant to real situations in their workplaces.
“The broad objective is to give participants the skills and confidence they need to know how to identify psychosocial hazards, and manage the risks that can arise.”
The course is taken by professionals from a range of organisations and roles, from workplace safety to human resources and consulting. It has also been designed to give participants a practical assessment they can then bring directly into their workplaces.
“What we’re finding is that the assessment is really useful for people to take and continue using as part of their practice. Learning is about change-making. People enjoy that really practical approach, and relevance to their own workplace.”
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