1. OSH levelling during economic slowdown - Communicating risk through the social amplification / attenuation model
Anyfantis I. 1, Boustras G.2, Karageorgiou A.1
1 Center for the Prevention of Occupational Hazards of Central Greece, Labour Inspectorate (SEPE), Greek Ministry of Labour, Farsalon 6, 41110, Larissa, Greece. [
2 Center for Risk, Safety and the Environment (CERISE), European University Cyprus, 6 Diogenes Street, Egkomi, 2404 Nicosia, Cyprus
Conceptualizing the OHS implications – Defining the eight pillows
The unstable environment
The social amplification / attenuation model in communicating risk
Since 2010, Greece is under a State – Aid program in order to restore market confidence. Fiscal consolidation programs are implemented accompanied with structural reforms.
The current financial crisis has imposed significant pressure upon the labour market and working conditions while, at the same time, Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) is challenged.
Crucial organizational functions such as training, new work equipment purchasing and innovation are mainly affected.
The environment in which an establishment operates affects the way it manages workplace occupational safety and health (OSH). There is actually a number of contextual and environmental factors identified as being influential over OSH management.
The environment is set by eight major determinants:
OHS in Employers’ Associations
OSH Management and Economics in Enterprises
Employers’ Point of View in OSH
Trade Unions Point of View for OSH
Employers’ and Employees’ participation in decision making
Public expenditure Sector
Roles and Resources of National Labour Inspectorate
Legislation
Occupational Accidents vs GDP
Some of the determinants are directly affected by NLI (either by enforcement or through its’ advisory role) and there is a direct placement of those. However, there is a kind of indirect mechanism that could also describe the dynamic adaption of interconnections between the eight determinants with each other. The proposed mechanism that effectively communicates risk between the eight pillars of OSH is based on the social amplification / attenuation model.
Public perception is dynamically shaped since it supplies and is given feedback from the media. Lay public, through its risk experiences and individual opinions supply the media which generate a “filtered” representation of risk events and issues.
Media either mass or social, play a significant role in the mechanism of risk communication between the aforementioned determinants.
The proposed model explains the lack of measures taken during a variety of challenging situations and the reasoning behind the regarded significance that is given or not given to specific situations.
GDP vs Occupational accidents and other risk factors
There is a positive correlation between a country’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and accidents’ rate with a respective phase shift representing the required time needed for adaptation.
The reduction of occupational accidents and their respective rates during periods of economic slowdown is probably due to:
 Dangerous economic sectors (e.g. construction) were significantly shrunk ;
 High unemployment rates indicate a trend to keep more experienced workers and avoid recruiting workers having little experience (unemployment on the younger generations reaches almost 60%);
 A dramatic increase in under-reporting (due to the fear of dismissal);
 Undeclared (shadow) work.
Such conditions reveal previous inefficiencies of OSH management and public enforcement.
Other risk factors include:
Psycho-social issues raised
Burnout syndrome
Crisis becomes an excuse for non-compliance with labour standards.
Job insecurity causing reduction of job satisfaction, loose social relations and decomposition of organizational commitment.
Cardiovascular diseases due to stress
Conclusions
Even though occupational accidents seem to reduce new risk factors are introduced and an opposite force has to be applied in order to balance OSH at an acceptable level. This opposite force is applied by the network formed by the eight major determinants.
The density of the stakeholder network and OSH’s centrality in the network influence the degree of resistance to any external force. Each shareholder has to redefine its position as well as its relation with the other shareholders and consequently OSH in order to reach a steady-state keeping OSH at an acceptable level despite the pressure. National Labour Inspectorate is the stakeholder having the power to influence all other stakeholders and relations by either regulatory surveillance or strong enforcement or by raising general public awareness. Both proactive regulatory and capacity-building support for social dialogue at the level of enterprise may strengthen relations and further support OSH .