In the effort to protect and promote the health and safety of employees, perhaps no issue is potentially more complex and challenging than that of employee “presenteeism.” Generally defined as a loss of personal productivity resulting from health-related issues, presenteeism can run the gamut, from simple exhaustion on Monday morning following a busy weekend to constant pain and discomfort stemming from a chronic medical condition.

France already has a strictly enforced 35 hour work. Now, French workers are getting even more assistance with establishing a work-life balance in the form of a new “right to disconnect” law that requires companies with 50 or more employees to grant their workers the right to not answer emails outside of regular work hours.

Welcome to a new year. Are you ready to set your resolutions for this year? How about starting by learning more about the international Understanding Small Enterprises (USE) Conference, which is being held in the U.S. for the first time this coming October 25-27, 2017. NIOSH is collaborating with the Center for Health, Work & Environment at the Colorado School of Public Health to host USE 2017.

Last Christmas, I gave my husband Steve a page-a-day calendar with Insights from the Dalai Lama. Occasionally, Steve shares one of these daily insights with me.

Talent analytics and big data have become leading organizational buzz words over the last several years—and for good reason.

Sleep loss and poor working conditions are the most important causes of occupational fatigue—which can impair mental and physical performance with the potential for serious errors and injuries, reports a review and update in the October Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).

This last full week of September is National Employ Older Workers Week. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the week “recognizes the vital role of older workers in the workforce … and aims to increase awareness of this labor segment and develop innovative strategies to tap it.”

Workplace mindfulness training programs can help workers manage stress and improve memory and focus. Training can be delivered in a number of ways including in-person and online, and according to a 2016 study by the National Business Group on Health and Fidelity Investments, 22 percent of companies have mindfulness training programs.

I’m not sure about you, but when I don’t sleep well, I can be pretty miserable. I’m not much fun to be around and I don’t work well – I can’t sustain my focus. We already know that sleep deprivation among workers is a billion-dollar problem across the globe. But how about the absence of sleep quality for your leaders – what impact does it have on subordinates?

Manufacturers, machine builders (OEMs) or system integrators who are proud of their company’s safety achievements can nominate themselves for the fourth annual Manufacturing Safety Excellence Awards by Rockwell Automation Inc.