New trends in work environment – New effects on safety

Europe has been subject to tremendous changes in terms of flexibility of work and labour in response to macro trends like globalisation and the resulting fierce market competition. Such changes in the world of work can give rise to new safety risks. Although the effects of “changing work environment” are fairly documented for psychosocial and ergonomic risks, the subsequent effects on occupational safety are less investigated. This paper sets a general framework on changing work environment presenting prominent descriptions by various institutes.New trends in work environment including new work organisational forms, new contractual relationships, new technologies and changes in the workforce are briefly presented. This paper reviews existing evidence on the effects of changing work environment on safety and occupational accidents. It further suggests an underlying mechanism explaining these effects that is based on organizational factors. Finally it discusses safety prevention challenges to policy makers. In conclusion a sustainable work system is suggested as an alternative to intensive systems.