A new report by the International Labour Organization reveals that more than 840,000 people die each year due to health conditions associated with workplace risks such as long working hours, job insecurity, harassment and bullying. The study highlights how the way jobs are designed, organized and managed has a profound impact on workers’ health, with rising cases of cardiovascular diseases, mental disorders and even suicide linked to these pressures.
Titled The Psychosocial Working Environment: Global Developments and Pathways for Action, the report examines how job demands, workplace organization and broader policies—such as performance systems and anti-harassment measures—collectively shape employee wellbeing. Researchers identified key risk factors including job strain, imbalance between effort and reward, job insecurity, excessive working hours, and workplace bullying. These risks were analyzed alongside global health and mortality data from the World Health Organization and the Global Burden of Disease study to estimate the annual death toll.
The ILO warns that evolving work environments are intensifying these challenges. Rapid changes driven by digitalization, artificial intelligence, remote work and new employment models may worsen existing psychosocial risks if not properly managed. According to Manal Azzi, these risks are becoming one of the most pressing concerns for occupational health worldwide, affecting not only worker wellbeing but also productivity and economic sustainability.
The report stresses that many of these deaths are preventable if root causes are addressed. It calls for integrating psychosocial risk management into occupational safety systems and strengthening collaboration between governments, employers and workers. Proactive measures, it concludes, can help build healthier workplaces, improve organizational performance and support long-term economic resilience.
