Cootehill is location for HSA conference on psychosocial risks
Psychosocial risks in the workplace could include excessive or conflicting job demands, poor support, bullying and harassment, unsocial or long hours.
AN event about identifying and managing psychosocial risks in the workplace was held in Cootehill this morning.
Over 100 people from various businesses and work environments attended the conference which was organised by The Health and Safety Authority (HSA), in association with the European Agency for Safety and Heath at Work (EU-OSHA).
The aim of the conference was to provide practical guidance on understanding psychosocial hazards, management of the risks and implementing practical steps to manage the hazards.
Employers, managers, HR managers and safety professionals also learned about the HSA’s role in supporting organisations with assessment and management of these hazards in the workplace.
Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment with special responsibility for Trade Promotion, AI and Digital Transformation, Niamh Smyth TD, opened the event at the Errigal Hotel in Cootehill.
Welcoming attendees from all over Ireland and representatives from the EU - OSHA to Cootehill on a particularly pleasant and dry Autumn day Minister Smyth assured all present that Cavan "always has weather like this."
"And despite what you might have heard on the news programmes this morning, it's not all happening in Dublin with EU Presidency meetings - it's happening in Cootehill," she joked.
Getting down to the reason for everyone's attendance in Cootehill, the minister explained that traditionally, the visible occupational safety and health challenges like workplace accidents and dangerous exposures have been physical risks.
"But effective prevention must respond to the workplace as it exists today," Niamh Smyth told the room, "That means recognising that the way work is structured can also create risks to workers' health."
Psychosocial risks, she said, can arise from issues such as excessive demands, poor communication, a lack of control or support, bullying and harassment, or poorly managed organisational change.
"We are living through a period of substantial change," Niamh Smyth said..
And speaking about her particular area of responsibility of artificial intelligence and digital transformation, the TD said that while technology can bring great potential to businesses it can also "alter the boundaries between our working and non-working lives."
"We should not wait until people are struggling, absent from work or experiencing ill-health before asking what could have been done differently.
"A better approach is to identify the factors within work that can cause harm, assess those risks and, wherever possible, address them at source.
Today's conference is part of the EU-OSHA 2026 to 2028 Healthy Workplaces campaign entitled 'Together for Mental Health at Work'.
"There is a clear connection between those two agendas," Niamh Smyth said, "Technology changes work, and when work changes, we need to understand what that means for productivity and performance, and equally what it means for people."
Other speakers at today's conference include Lia Flintrop, Senior Research Project Manager of EU-OSHA, Members of the HSA's Behavioural Health and Safety Team, and Dr Robert Kerr, Senior Lecturer at the University of Ulster.