Center for Work, Health, & Well-being

This study examined the feasibility of implementing an organizational intervention to improve worker safety, health, and well-being in a Chilean transportation company. The project brought workers, supervisors, and leaders together to identify concerns and develop sustainable solutions to improve working conditions. Rather than relying exclusively on outside consultants, the intervention provided guidance to the company as it developed the internal skills, teams, and processes needed to develop a sustained capacity to improve working conditions. Because this intervention was implemented during social and political unrest in Chile and the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers also noted how capacity-building approaches can help companies become more adaptable and responsive to worker and productivity concerns during periods of disruption.

Developed through a Center for Work, Health, & Well-being collaboration with HealthPartners of Minnesota, the Dimensions of Corporate Integration measurement tool offers a comprehensive approach to assessing, documenting, and discussing worksite health assets. It serves both as a guide and a critical information source, driving efforts to create programs that sustain and improve worker safety and health.

"Implementing an Integrated Approach: Weaving Employee Health, Safety, and Well-Being into the Fabric of Your Organization" is a detailed step-by-step evidence-based approach to implementing an integrated approach to worker safety, health, and well-being at an organization. With real-world examples, it demonstrates how to inspire key worksite stakeholders to support and participate in an integrated approach; identify goals and objectives for an integrated initiative; target working conditions meaningful to workers and employers; implement policies and practices that create and sustain positive working conditions; and evaluate and continually improve efforts to enhance worker safety, health, and well-being. These guidelines are available in English and in Spanish, with a stand-alone Executive Summary available in English.

The Center for Work, Health, & Well-being developed a series of Toolbox Talks as part of the All the Right Moves (ARM) Program with construction workers. These Toolbox Talks fall into three categories: Respiratory Health, Safety Climate, and Work Life – three areas that the Center's research has shown are of significant importance in the construction industry. The construction industry is a highly dynamic work environment with significant physical hazards. As a result, workers are more prone to injuries, including musculoskeletal disorders, and high-risk health behaviors. Both factors limit their productivity and ability to work. Programs to improve construction worker health, safety, and productivity often incorporate Toolbox Talks on relevant topics. These short facilitated interactive discussions provide opportunities for learning and also for workers to share their experiences and suggestions.

This study examined how working conditions shaped the safety, health, and well-being of professional drivers in a Chilean transportation company. Researchers used interviews and focus groups with drivers, supervisors, union representatives, safety staff, and company leaders to understand how scheduling, communication, and work organization affected drivers’ health and safety. The study showed how structured input from workers and managers can reveal specific pathways linking working conditions to health and safety risks in a particular workplace. These insights informed the design of a targeted organizational intervention to improve worker safety, health, and well-being, guided by information from workers and managers about their working conditions.

"Implementing an Integrated Approach: Weaving Employee Health, Safety, and Well-Being into the Fabric of Your Organization" is a detailed step-by-step evidence-based approach to implementing an integrated approach to worker safety, health, and well-being at an organization. With real-world examples, it demonstrates how to inspire key worksite stakeholders to support and participate in an integrated approach; identify goals and objectives for an integrated initiative; target working conditions meaningful to workers and employers; implement policies and practices that create and sustain positive working conditions; and evaluate and continually improve efforts to enhance worker safety, health, and well-being. These guidelines are available in English and in Spanish, with a stand-alone Executive Summary available in English.

"Implementing an Integrated Approach: Weaving Employee Health, Safety, and Well-Being into the Fabric of Your Organization" is a detailed step-by-step evidence-based approach to implementing an integrated approach to worker safety, health, and well-being at an organization. With real-world examples, it demonstrates how to inspire key worksite stakeholders to support and participate in an integrated approach; identify goals and objectives for an integrated initiative; target working conditions meaningful to workers and employers; implement policies and practices that create and sustain positive working conditions; and evaluate and continually improve efforts to enhance worker safety, health, and well-being. These guidelines are available in English and in Spanish, with a stand-alone Executive Summary available in English.

This study examined whether vicarious trauma, the emotional and psychological effects of repeated exposure to others’ traumatic experiences, may affect hospital workers’ physical health. Focusing on nurses and patient care associates at two large hospitals, researchers linked workers’ vicarious trauma symptoms to subsequent health insurance claims for stress-sensitive gastrointestinal conditions. The research suggests that the effects of caring for traumatized patients may extend beyond emotional distress to become a broader occupational health risk.

This study examined whether a hospital safe patient-handling intervention worked equally well for nurses and patient care associates, two groups with different roles, job demands and exposures. The intervention itself went beyond equipment installation to include training, coaching, and organizational supports to help workers actually use the installed equipment. Although the intervention successfully reduced injuries overall, those reductions were concentrated among nurses rather than shared equally across worker groups. The study shows why workplace safety interventions should be judged not only by their overall impact, but also by whether they protect the workers facing the greatest risks.

The Thriving from Work Questionnaire was developed to measure worker well-being. There is currently a short-form (8 item) and a long-form (30 item) version of the questionnaire. The Thriving from Work Questionnaire has been validated in populations of workers in the U.S. and several other countries. The Thriving from Work Questionnaires provide a measure of work-related well-being that can be used in surveys with workers. Developed using a rigorous systematic study design, the questionnaires have been found to be responsive, reliable, and valid across a broad range of settings and sectors. Further study of the utility and psychometric properties of the questionnaires is ongoing.

The Thriving from Work Questionnaire Frequently Asked Questions document describes thriving from work and the Thriving from Work Questionnaires, as well as what these instruments measure and why measuring thriving from work is important.

The Thriving from Work Questionnaire has been translated from English to German and validated in populations of workers in Germany.

The Thriving from Work Questionnaire has been translated from English to Spanish and validated in populations of workers in Peru and Mexico.

The Thriving from Work Questionnaire Scoring Guide accompanies the Thriving from Work Questionnaire User Manual and was developed to assist both researchers and practitioners in scoring the Thriving from Work Questionnaire using some common approaches. There are a variety of scoring options one may use with the Thriving from Work Questionnaire; the pros and cons of different scoring approaches depend on the goals of the use of the instrument and the context in which the data are collected.

The Thriving from Work User Manual provides a definition for "Thriving from Work" and why it is important to measure, the process used to develop the Thriving from Work conceptual framework and questionnaires, the full English versions of the two questionnaires including the short-form and the long-form, and their practical applications.