The report underlines that the issue is not a lack of willingness to try, but rather structural, organisational and cultural obstacles that make it difficult to turn knowledge into action.

“A surprising number of leaders struggle with the same thing: They fail to turn theory into practice. 

Read the article in Norwegian on Arbeidsliv i Norden

“Many leaders know very well what is needed to improve the psychosocial working environment and also take action, but the results fail to materialise,” says Magnus Åkerström. He is head of research at the Institute for Stress Medicine in the Västra Götaland region.

Åkerström presented the results from the report “Obstacles to Effective Measures” during the Nordic conference on psychosocial working environments in Helsinki in September.

The regulations on organisational and social work environment (Swedish Work Environment Authority, 2015; Swedish Work Environment Authority, 2023b) came into force in 2016.

A few years later, in 2022 and 2023, surveys mapped how managers, HR staff, safety representatives and union representatives experienced the practical application of the regulations.

The surveys concluded that there is definitely room for improvement. 

The evaluations revealed a need to place greater focus on the organisational level rather than on the individual. They also uncovered challenges in applying the regulations in practice. 

The researchers at the Institute for Stress Medicine were commissioned by the Swedish Work Environment Authority to find out why this is the case. They asked the question: Which obstacles exist to succeeding in improving the psychosocial working environment?

The researchers analysed data from 440 workplaces in the welfare sector, mainly within health and social care.

Head of research Magnus Åkerström was surprised by how similar the responses were, regardless of the workplace type or size.

“Many talk about the same types of challenges,” says Åkerström.

The analysis shows that nine in ten employers point to the need for implementing measures to fight the imbalance between demands and resources.

The report identifies 10 obstacles to efficient measures, divided across three levels:

Leadership and organisation level

Many companies lack a basic understanding of what a psychosocial working environment actually is. Measures are often confused with well-being initiatives like “walk and talk”, ergonomics or social activities, rather than focusing on workloads, organisation and responsibility.

Working environment measures are also often put on hold during periods of organisational change. Leaders wait for “calmer times” that never come, as change has become a permanent state.

The working environment perspective often competes with economic and production goals, and most often loses.

In the workplace

Frontline leaders often carry the responsibility alone. They do not have the time, mandate or support to work systematically. Many feel that HR and higher management levels pursue strategic initiatives with little practical relevance.

Leaders have to deal with daily crises and dissatisfaction. They rarely get the chance to work preventively. The working environment is something that is addressed “when something is already on fire”.

Implementation of measures

There is a lack of incentives to change the organisation of work. Change does not happen because of a fear of reducing productivity or exceeding budgets.

The communication between the strategic and operational levels is weak. Those who make the decisions and those who are expected to carry them out do not speak the same language.

Magnus Åkerström believes the obstacles can be overcome by increasing the understanding of the work with the organisational and social working environment. 

“There is a lot of talk, many good initiatives, but few concrete results,” he says.

Some leaders lack knowledge, many lack the working methods, and not least: Most say they lack the time to work systematically with these issues.

Åkerström hopes more managers will realise that prioritising work on the psychosocial working environment is just as important as spending time on efficiency and finances. 

After all, everything is connected. Satisfied employees are more effective employees, which in turn benefits the organisation’s finances.

The research leader points out that, going forward, it is essential to strengthen the understanding of psychosocial working environments, provide managers with access to suitable methods and tools, and make sure frontline managers have the time and space to do the job.

However, Åkerström warns against introducing too many measures.

“It is also important to prioritise how many and which measures to implement. That increases the chance of success,” he believes.