Occupational risk assessments increasingly, and more boldly, identify risks such as “psychosocial hazards”, so where does Gen Z fit into this?

For many years, occupational health and safety was associated above all with physical hazards, among them noise, vibration, machinery, chemical substances and work at height. These were the areas on which OHS attention focused most. People in the working environment, however, are also exposed to hazards that cannot be measured with a simple instrument.

Psychosocial hazards at work are a large group of factors. Poor work organisation, that is, excessive duties, working under time pressure, an unclear scope of responsibilities or a lack of autonomy, leads to mental overload from work. The more important factors from the perspective of this topic are conflicts in the team, lack of support, social isolation and workplace bullying (mobbing).

What can the consequences of these hazards be? Chronic stress can cause anxiety, insomnia and even depression, which in the longer term can lead to professional burnout. Psychosomatic symptoms can appear as cardiovascular problems and gastrointestinal disorders. Employees who have been victims of bullying are at risk of reduced self-esteem and, in extreme cases, post-traumatic stress disorder may develop.

In OHS we know very well that merely identifying a hazard does not yet mean effective risk management. If we write “stress” or “psychosocial hazards” into an occupational risk assessment but no actions follow, we remain only at the documentation stage.

No one would consider it an effective machine safeguard merely to write in an instruction that there is a risk of being caught by moving parts. The mere fact of identifying a hazard does not protect the employee. Concrete actions are needed: technical safeguards, procedures, training and supervision.

Why, then, should it be different for mental hazards? Psychosocial hazards also have to be managed, and as a preventive measure it is worth considering taking care of wellbeing.

So where does Gen Z fit into all this?

Generation Z is often accused of being more sensitive, talking about emotions more and seeking help faster. But this can be looked at from a completely different angle. It is not necessarily that young people have more problems than previous generations. Perhaps Gen Z-ers have greater awareness and a greater readiness to talk about them. For many people from earlier generations, a visit to a psychologist could be a cause for shame. Mental health problems were often hidden because they were associated with weakness.

Today more and more people treat psychological support much like a visit to the doctor, and treat mental health as an inseparable part of overall wellbeing, just like taking care of physical fitness. And it is precisely here that Generation Z may be a symbol of a bigger social change. It is worth remembering, however, that simply talking about mental health does not solve every problem.

Generation Z cares more about mental health because it is characterised by greater awareness of and openness to the subject. As the Polish Press Agency reports: over six years the number of psychology students in Poland has grown by almost 150 per cent. Gen Z-ers reject old taboos, talk openly about emotions and go to psychotherapy more often.

Young employees, more often than their older colleagues, set clear boundaries between work and private life: they do not reply to messages after hours, they negotiate flexible forms of employment and are able to turn down an offer if the organisational culture does not guarantee psychological safety.