Queen's University Belfast will collaborate on a major UK initiative to create healthier workplaces and promote sustainable employment, as part of a £1.8 million programme supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (funded by the UK's Department of Health and Social Care).

Dr Juliet Hassard, from Queen's Business School, will work with academics from Birkbeck, University of London, the University of Nottingham and Lancaster University. The project is being led by Lancaster under the direction of Professor Stavroula Leka and will focus on key priorities in work and health research.

Experts warn the UK faces a significant challenge, with 2.78 million people currently out of work due to ill-health. Employers are estimated to face annual costs of £18.8 billion, alongside further pressures on the NHS and welfare systems.

Mental-health conditions have driven the sharpest rise over the past decade. Evidence indicates that poor mental health affects workers across all ages and backgrounds and frequently coincides with physical health issues, making it harder for people to stay in work.

The impact on young people has been especially severe, with mental ill-health identified as a factor in the UK reaching a record one million young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET), a situation estimated to cost the economy £125 billion per year.

Queen's involvement will support a three-year, prevention-focused research programme to update policies and measures that can be scaled across national, regional, sectoral and organisational levels. Dr Juliet Hassard, from Queen's Business School, said: "Poor mental health is now one of the leading reasons people leave the workforce, highlighting the need for a greater focus on prevention.

"This project will examine how policies and workplace practices can help create healthier psychosocial work environments - where work is designed, organised and managed in ways that support wellbeing.

"By identifying what works in the UK and internationally, we hope to generate evidence that informs future policy and helps more people remain in healthy, sustainable work."

Building on earlier research, the team will map current UK processes and policies, benchmark them against other countries, and highlight good practice that prevents poor mental health, alongside recommendations for improvement.

They will assess which workplace prevention approaches are most effective and identify the key indicators linked to better mental health and wellbeing at work.

The project will issue guidance on designing fair, positive psychosocial work environments, with the aim of advancing sustainable employment and reducing health inequalities.

A practical, evidence-based implementation plan will translate the findings into concrete changes in UK policy and everyday workplace practices.

Stavroula Leka, Distinguished Professor of Organisations, Work and Health and Principal Investigator at Lancaster University, said: "While more people are economically inactive due to mental ill-health in the UK than in other countries, this is not a uniquely British challenge. Similar trends can be seen in other countries including Finland and Norway, but what makes them different is how they are responding.

"These countries have worked to revamp their regulation, policies and support systems, putting a healthy psychosocial work environment and sustainable work at the heart of these initiatives."