A global perspective on addressing occupational safety and health hazards in the future of work

摘要

The future of work is a topic of broad academic and public interest, as evidenced by the vast literature on the topic. The “future of work” is generally portrayed in terms of the impact of technology on jobs and labor markets (16). Numerous scenarios in the gray and peer-reviewed literature provide expansive future visions, but they rarely focus on task level scenarios or go beyond manual and cognitive descriptors of work. Moreover, there is a limited literature on the hazards, both traditional and nontraditional, accompanying future of work scenarios. Most common visions address two different views of the impact of technology: a dystopian one characterized by high rates of job displacement and work degradation, and; a more optimistic one in which numerous new and upgraded jobs are created, as has historically been the case with the advent of new technologies. It is important to appreciate the role of technology in the future of work, but other factors are also important and less often discussed (4). These include globalization, demographics, urbanization, sustainability, pandemics, and climate-related factors, to name a few.