Impact of Workplace Safety and Health on Sustainable Development: A Whitepaper 

Abstract

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employment practices and the nature of work will continue to be felt for generations. New estimates confirm that labor markets around the world were affected by the pandemic on historically unprecedented scales.¹


Globalization, use of technology, and the reopening of workplaces present new challenges and opportunities for workplace safety and health. Protecting and promoting workers’ safety and health has many socioeconomic benefits, and positive safety culture is associated with organizational performance measures directly related to sustainable development.² Therefore, advancing workplace safety and health culture is an important global priority in the pursuit of building a sustainable workforce in alignment with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

To help achieve this, employers can:

• Begin by performing an assessment of safety and health climate and culture at all levels of the organization;
• Identify actionable areas of improvement;
• Build a business case using data to demonstrate the return on investment in safety and health to influence support for implementation of new program and policies; and
• Enterprises should also consider implementation of International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards 45001 and 9001.

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