Oikonomics, the UOC’s magazine of economics, business and society, organized a presentation event on 19 June 2024, of which we attach a video, of a very special edition such as that of its tenth anniversary. For this reason, the publication devotes a monograph to the analysis of well-being from a holistic view. A vision that, on the one hand, addresses the analysis of the current challenges posed by the welfare society, understood as a system by which the public administration guarantees citizens a set of basic social services, mainly in health, education, pensions, unemployment, housing... to improve their living conditions and promote equal opportunities for personal fulfillment. And, on the other hand, it also incorporates elements of reflection regarding personal well-being with approximations to the study of human strengths and happiness.

This monograph from Oikonomics, therefore, shows well-being as a broad concept to examine how personal sovereignty, collective well-being, welfare state, public education, health, pension system sustainability and tax awareness interact to shape citizenship quality of life. This act organized in the College of Economists addresses this analysis from three areas: personal sovereignty, the role played by the public sector in the construction of the welfare society and the sustainability of finances that allow it to be financed. Issues that raise deep questions and future challenges to identify and correct possible adjustments that need to be made to have a fair and efficient welfare state.

Moderated by the coordinator of the monograph, the professor of the Economic and Business Studies of the UOC, Fernando Alvarez, these issues are addressed by three authors of the articles that make up this special edition of Oikonomics: the professor of Economics of the Universitat de Barcelona, Alejandro Esteller; the collaborating professor of the Economic and Business Studies of the UOC, Gemma Segura and the collaborating profesor of the UOC, Laura López. To commemorate Oikonomics’ birthday, the UOC’s director, Àngels Fitó; the vice-rector, Mª Jesús Martínez, the head of the Economic and Business Studies, Xavier Baraza, and the head of Oikonomics, Joan Miquel Gomis, also participated in this presentation.

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.

Some reflections are derived from recent studies conducted by the National Institute for Safety and Health at Work (INSHT) in a sample of over 60 excellent companies and directed by the writer of this article, on the link of Occupational hazards prevention to the Social Responsibility policy, and how this contributes to consolidate their successes.