The Minister for Work and Social Economy, Yolanda Díaz, during her speech in Geneva (Switzerland)
The Second Vice-President and Minister for Work and Social Economy, Yolanda Díaz, took part in Geneva in the conference organised by the European Academy of Occupational Psychological Health, where she presented the public policies on labour issues that she has promoted to safeguard the health and well-being of workers: "We have built the employment economy as an element of welfare. Work must be stable, dignified and with rights".
Measures such as the Labour Reform contribute to eliminating abuses of temporary employment and extending employment stability, which has improved the working conditions of many millions of working people. According to Díaz, the great success of this measure is that it has been carried out with tripartite social dialogue, thereby endorsing a regulation that has been decisive in tackling a temporary employment situation that has always been linked to precariousness. "There is nothing more damaging to mental health than someone living a precarious life," she insisted.
She also argued that the increase in the Minimum Professional Wage has been an important step towards reducing inequality, improving working conditions and significantly reducing the wage gap for women and young people. "There is no greater discomfort than not making ends meet. It is the most feminist tool", the vice-president stressed.
Reduction of working hours
Díaz pointed out that work is continuing on the reduction of working hours: "The 21st century has the tools for us to work less and produce more. Reduced working hours is not a minor issue and is linked to workers' mental health".
The Ministry of Work has also promoted different types of care leave and has extended childcare leave. "The care factor linked to women is a key occupational risk factor," said the vice-president. "This is making the female working population sick," she insisted.
"Policies that defend job security and stability, that promote decent work and better working conditions and wages reduce the mental pressure on workers", explained the vice-president, who gave as an example the announcement of the extension of death leave to 10 days, and the introduction of palliative care leave.
In this context, she also mentioned public policies deployed to promote the protection of mental health at work, such as the Strategy for Health and Safety at Work with the incorporation of mental health in an integral manner, and Royal Decree 893/2024, which regulates the protection of health and safety in the area of family home services, a group that has historically been the target of discrimination by the public authorities. "When there is discrimination, there is a violation of rights," she said emphatically.
Also at international level
The minister commented on how at international level the inclusion of psychosocial risks at work has been promoted. In this respect, during the Spanish presidency of the EU, the first conclusions of the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council, one of the formations of the Council of the EU, on mental health related to job insecurity, were promoted.
The vice-president called for investment in building a culture of prevention for mental health at work. "Psychosocial risks are the result of decades of disregard for working conditions. Far from theorising the end of work, what we want is to work less and live better. You cannot think that you can work in just any way", concluded the vice-president, who called for mental health to be taken seriously, and for a specific regulation for psychosocial risks to be promoted at international level.
Non official translation