“At the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, the qualitative upgrade of working conditions is high on our agenda,” said the Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Security, Vassilios Petros Spanakis, who participated yesterday, Tuesday, October 10, 2023, World Mental Health Day, in the “2nd International Wellbeing Forum/Empowering People, Embracing the Earth-Mental Health at the Center of the Ecosystem, Ensuring the Sustainability of the Planet’, organized by the Wellbeingr Non-Profit Company.

“We want the employees to be healthy, to feel and be safe and to feel satisfied with the environment in which they work” noted Mr. Spanakis and added that the goal for satisfied employees is a social investment. As he said, employees who are happy with their work can be more efficient, increasing productivity and thus contributing to economic progress, development and social welfare.

The Deputy Minister of Labor emphasized its value prevention for the mental health of employees. In particular, he underlined: “We design our policy with a holistic approach to working conditions. We ensure the well-being of employees, with an emphasis on prevention, and we promote the consolidation of a work culture, promoting the mental health of employees, with a focus on the balance between their professional and personal lives.”

At the same time, he referred to actions of the ministry that promote the mental health of employees, pointing out the following: “We promote actions, such as work sports, that enhance employee socialization and promote their well-being. As for work sports, in addition to the benefits that exercise has for physical and mental health, with the participation of employees in sports of their liking, strong bonds are built between employees, which promote teamwork, noble rivalry, cooperation and the collective effort”.

Also, Mr. Spanakis announced that the ministry is preparing a second bill, which deals with social security issues and the provision of opportunities for retirees who want to work. The next legislative initiative will have to do with changing the institutional framework for the health and safety of workers.

Closing his presentation, the Deputy Minister of Labor addressed an open invitation to participate in the open public debate on the modernization of the institutional framework for the health and safety of workers. “I want to invite you to participate in the open social dialogue, which we are starting at the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, for the modernization of the institutional framework for the health and safety of workers. The proposals will be a pillar for us, a guide for this legislative initiative of ours and we will take steps forward. We want and we can for our country to be a pilot in this effort throughout Europe,” said Mr. Spanakis.