Psychological hazards in the workplace

Ignoring invisible hazards is a major risk for businesses

By Rose Byass 

14 November 2024

Understanding Psychological Hazards in the Workplace: A Key Component of Employee Wellbeing 

Psychological hazards, though non-physical in nature, are critical to identify and address in any workplace. Acknowledging and managing these hazards is essential for maintaining a safe and supportive environment that promotes employee wellbeing and mental health. 

The Importance of Psychological Safety 

Under Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) laws, employers—referred to as Persons Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBUs)—are required to manage the risk of psychological hazards within the workplace. While workplace safety is a shared responsibility, managers must particularly understand the concept of psychological safety and the serious implications of failing to address psychological hazards. Psychological hazards can have significant consequences for individuals, teams, employers, and the overall business. These hazards can result in stress, anxiety, depression, PTSD, sleep disorders, and even exacerbate other physical conditions like musculoskeletal injuries, chronic illnesses, or fatigue. 

What Are Psychological Hazards? 

Psychological hazards refer to workplace factors that increase the risk of harm to an employee's mental health or wellbeing. Common examples include unclear job expectations, poor organizational structure, inadequate training, micromanagement, and ineffective change management. Additional hazards include failure to address bullying or harassment, lack of career progression, sexual harassment, workplace violence, and inadequate recognition of employee performance. Even the physical work environment—such as isolation from colleagues when working from home or the stress caused by an open-plan office—can contribute to psychological strain. 

Key Psychological Hazards and How to Address Them

• Job demands
• Remote or isolated work
• Low job control
• Lack of understanding or job clarity
• Violence and aggression
• Lack of organisational justice within the workplace
• Poor change management process
• Disorganised workplace- poor work condition/ ergonomics
• Insufficient training

Job Control 

Low job control refers to situations where employees have little autonomy over how or when they perform their tasks. This can occur in jobs where: 

• Work is primarily machine or computer-based
• Tasks are strictly managed, such as in scripted call centers
• Employees have little input in how they complete their work, when they can take breaks, or switch tasks
• Employees are excluded from decisions that affect their work or their clients
• Employees are unable to refuse dealing with difficult clients, such as in police or emergency services

High and Low Job Demands

Job demands relate to the amount of physical, mental, or emotional effort required in a job. Both high and low demands can pose psychological risks depending on the nature and intensity of the work. 

High-Demand Jobs

Examples of high-demand jobs include: 

• Long work hours or high workloads, such as too many tasks, clients, or a fast work pace under time pressure
• Jobs that exceed an employee’s capabilities or training

Roles requiring prolonged attention, such as air traffic controllers, long-distance

• drivers, or security personnel monitoring rare events
• Emotional labour, like paramedics responding to difficult patients or social workers assisting distressed clients
• Exposure to traumatic or violent events, common in emergency services, mental health roles, or child protection
• Shift work, which increases the risk of fatigue
• Working in challenging or hazardous environments, such as extreme temperatures, noisy areas, or with dangerous equipment
• Demanding tasks while wearing uncomfortable protective gear, such as nurses working in surgery or teachers in noisy classrooms

Low-Demand Jobs

Low-demand roles may involve: 

• Too little work to do
• Repetitive, monotonous tasks with minimal mental engagement, such as picking or packing products, or monitoring production lines

Support and Organisational Issues

Poor Support

Poor support occurs when employees lack: 

• Emotional or practical support from supervisors and coworkers
• Adequate information or training to perform their roles effectively
• Proper tools, equipment, or resources to do the job

Poor Organisational Change Management

When changes within an organisation are poorly managed, it can result in significant psychological strain. This can happen when: 

• The health, safety, and performance impacts of changes like downsizing or new technology aren’t adequately considered
• There is insufficient consultation or communication with stakeholders and employees about major changes
• Employees lack practical support during transitions

Poor Organisational Justice

Poor organisational justice refers to situations where: 

• Policies and procedures are applied inconsistently
• Decisions regarding resources and work allocation are unfair or biased
• Underperformance is not properly managed

Recognition, Role Clarity, and Workplace RelationshipsLow Recognition and Reward

Jobs with low recognition and reward are those where: 

• Employees receive little positive feedback

• Efforts are not adequately recognised or rewarded

• There is limited opportunity for skill development 

• Skills and experience are underutilized

• Task information is frequently unclear or changed

• Job roles and priorities conflict, creating confusion

Low Role Clarity

• Low role clarity refers to situations where: 
• Tasks and work standards are unclear or frequently change
• Important task information is unavailable to employees
• Employees experience conflicting job roles or responsibilities, like competing priorities from different managers

Poor Workplace Relationships

Poor workplace relationships can arise from: 

• Workplace bullying, harassment, or aggression, including sexual harassment and discrimination
• Conflict between employees, supervisors, or clients, especially when management fails to address inappropriate behavior
• A lack of fairness in managing organizational or performance-related issues

Environmental and Work Conditions Poor Environmental Conditions

Poor environmental conditions involve exposure to hazardous or uncomfortable working environments, such ass:

• Hazardous manual handling tasks
• Poor air quality or high noise levels
• Extreme temperatures
• Unsafe machinery or equipment

 Remote and Isolated Work
Remote work occurs when employees are based in locations where resources and communications are limited, often with lengthy travel times. Examples include:

• Farmers
• Real estate agents
• Community nurses working late-night shifts
• Night-shift operators at petrol stations or convenience stores
• Offshore miners
• Fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) workers
•  Isolated work refers to roles where employees are physically distant from others, and help, particularly in emergencies, may be hard to access.

Violent or Traumatic 

• Employees in certain industries may be exposed to violent or traumatic incidents, which can result in psychological distress. This includes workers in first responder roles, healthcare, disaster response, social work, and defence. Examples of such

•  events include: 
  • Robbery
  • Verbal or physical assault
  • Being threatened with or harmed by a weapon
  • Being bitten, spat at, scratched, or kicked

Conclusion

Recognising and addressing psychosocial hazards is crucial for minimising their impact on employee health, safety, and overall wellbeing. Employers must actively manage these risks to ensure a safe, supportive, and productive work environment.