Occupational Health

The development, promotion, and maintenance of workplace policies and programs that ensure the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of employees. These policies and programs strive to prevent harmful health effects because of the work environment, protect employees from health hazards while on the job, place employees in work environments that are suitable to their physical and mental make-up, address other factors that may affect an employee's health and well-being, such as ineffective organization of work, harassment and violence in the workplace, the need to balance work and family responsibilities (e.g., elder care, child care) promote healthy lifestyles .

Occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace and has a strong focus on primary prevention of hazards. The health of the workers has several determinants, including risk factors at the workplace leading to cancers, accidents, musculoskeletal diseases, respiratory diseases, hearing loss, circulatory diseases, stress related disorders and communicable diseases and others.

Employment and working conditions in the formal or informal economy embrace other important determinants, including, working hours, salary, workplace policies concerning maternity leave, health promotion and protection provisions, etc.