Impact of the economic crisis on working conditions and occupational health
The objective of this article is to analyze the effects that the economic crisis Catalonia suffers since year 2008 has had on employment and working conditions, with special emphasis on issues related to safety and health at work. The impact of the crisis, besides the effect it has had on people who have lost their jobs, is already perceivable in a worsening of working conditions in areas such as working hours or exposure to ergonomic and psychosocial risks.
Although this deterioration has not yet translated into a significant increase in the register of accidents and work-related illnesses, this cannot lead us to the mistake of thinking that the crisis has not caused damage in the field of prevention. On the one hand, it is necessary to take caution about data from public registers of occupational accidents, which currently do not allow us to detect work-related illnesses and, on the other hand, it is necessary to take into account that the deterioration in the working conditions does not immediately translate into occupational accidents or diseases. For this reason, it is necessary, now that it seems the economic situation starts to improve, to regain lost ground in terms of risk prevention.
ODS
Jaume de Montserrat i NonóBachelor of Science in Medicine and Surgery from the Autonomous University of Barcelona; Occupational Medicine specialist, graduated in Company Medicine and technician of Prevention of Occupational Risks in the fields of Ergonomics and Applied Psychosociology, Industrial Hygiene and Safety at Work.
In 1987 he started to work at the Centre for Occupational Safety and Health in Girona for the Labor Department of the Generalitat (now the Department of Enterprise and Employment), of which he was the director from 1997 until June 2008, when he was appointed General Deputy Director of Occupational Safety and Health of the Department of Enterprise and Employment (DEMO, in its acronym in Catalan) of the Generalitat of Catalonia, a position he currently holds.
Alongside his work in DEMO, he is linked to several scientific societies, such as the Catalan Society of Safety and Occupational Medicine, which he chaired between 1997 and 2001. He has an active presence in various publications on occupational health and he is a regular speaker at occupational health conferences. He develops comprehensive teaching tasks related to occupational health and he is an associate professor at the University of Girona, in the Area of Occupational Health of the University Nursing School.
Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery from the Autonomous University of Barcelona; Occupational Medicine specialist, graduated in Company Medicine and technician in Prevention of Occupational Risks in the fields of Ergonomics and Applied Psychosociology (master from the University Pompeu Fabra). Master in Research Methodology in Health Sciences (Autonomous University of Barcelona).
Professionally dedicated to occupational health since 1985: occupational doctor in a local administration until 1999, she then developed her work in the Occupational Health Services of the Public Health Agency of Barcelona since 2009, in the General Deputy Office of Security and Occupational Health as head of the Research Area, with an active presence in various occupational health publications.
Bachelor of Science in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Barcelona; master's degree in Health Computing and technician in Prevention of Occupational Risks in the field of Ergonomics and Applied Psychosociology by the IDEC-ISP.
In 1992 he joined the Lleida Centre for Occupational Safety and Health of the Labor Department (now Department of Enterprise and Employment), where he served as a doctor in the Medicine section.
In 2005 he joined the team of the General Deputy Office of Occupational Safety and Health for the Labor Department, and in 2008 he was in charge of the Area of Information and Registers of Occupational Security and Health of this Office, a task he continues to develop today.
Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona and in History from the University of Barcelona, he worked in various news agencies and press offices. In 2006 he joined the Press Office of the Labor and Industry Department (now the Department of Enterprise and Employment). After a brief period in the General Direction of Industrial Relations, he joined the General Deputy Office of Labor Safety in 2010, where he develops the editing and management of publications on occupational health and safety, as well as content development for web and social networks.
Industrial Technical Engineer from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Industrial Organization Engineer from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia and Technician of Prevention of Occupational Risks in the fields of Work Safety, Industrial Hygiene, Ergonomics and Applied Psychosociology.
In 1992 he started to work at the Barcelona Centre for Occupational Safety and Health of the Labor Department of the Generalitat of Catalonia (now Department of Enterprise and Employment). In 2004 he was assigned to the General Deputy Department of Occupational Safety and Health of the Department of Enterprise and Employment. Since 2008 he is the head of the Technical Area.
