From December issue, NZ Manufacturer www.nzmanufacturer.co.nz

Theresa Grainger, General Manager, The Lean Hub

Every manufacturing site I visit, whether it is a busy factory floor or a small specialised workshop, I believe has one universal truth and that is that people want to feel valued, supported, and safe to share their ideas and do meaningful work.

This is where ISO 45003 adds real value, released in 2021 as the world’s first global standard dedicated to managing psychosocial risks and it has become increasingly relevant as organisations recognise that wellbeing and high performance go hand in hand.

Building on the foundation established by ISO 45001, ISO 45003 extends workplace safety into an area many organisations still find challenging to define and measure: the mental, emotional, and social conditions of work.

It provides guidance for creating environments where people can not only perform well but genuinely thrive.

At its core, ISO 45003 is about both preventing harm and protecting workers from psychosocial risks before they escalate. It encourages organisations to take a proactive approach, identifying early warning signs and addressing the root causes of stress or conflict, and designing work environments that reduce the likelihood of harm.

The standard offers not just compliance guidance, but a roadmap for building resilient, high-performing and people-centric operations.

Personally, this is where it really resonates for me, I love what it represents because it speaks to something I have witnessed again and again in my work: when we design workplaces around people, when we honour their wellbeing, their voices, and their value, the entire organisation lifts.

It is also deeply aligned with the principles of Lean and Continuous Improvement, at its heart, Lean isn’t just about eliminating waste, it is about creating environments where people can collaborate openly, feel safe to speak up and bring their best selves to their work.

So what are psychosocial risks? At their core, psychosocial risks are the pressures and conditions within a workplace that can harm a person’s mental, emotional, or social wellbeing.

They show up in many forms, for example: stressful workloads, unclear roles, bullying or exclusion, limited autonomy, job insecurity or poorly designed work processes.

These risks have always been present, but what has evolved is our understanding of just how deeply they influence organisational performance.

They are not signs of individual weakness, they are indicators that the system itself is under strain. When psychosocial risks go unaddressed, they disrupt focus, communication, decision-making, and team engagement and cohesion.

Over time, this directly affects quality, safety and reliability. And in manufacturing, where precision, consistency, and strong collaboration are essential, it becomes clear that psychological safety isn’t a “nice-to-have” it is a core driver of productivity and operational excellence.

So where can organisations begin? Start small, start curious and start with your people. Begin by asking a few simple questions: Do our teams feel safe raising concerns? Are workloads realistic?

Do people have clarity in their roles? Are there parts of our processes that consistently create stress or conflict?

From here, hold short wellbeing-focused Gemba walks and build psychosocial risks into your hazard registers, inviting workers to co-design solutions. Psychosocial risks in a hazard register could include:

• Excessive workload or unrealistic deadlines
• Low role clarity or conflicting expectations
• Limited autonomy or control over work
• Poorly designed shift patterns or long hours
• Bullying, exclusion, or interpersonal conflict
• Poor communication or inconsistent leadership
• Job insecurity or unclear change processes
• Emotional strain from high-risk or high-pressure tasks
• Isolated work or lack of team support
• Processes that consistently create stress, confusion or rework

And with each hazard identified, a control should be added, for example:

• If workload is excessive, redistribute tasks, adjust planning and/or introduce workload monitoring.
• If roles are unclear, update role descriptions, improve handovers or create standard work.
• If conflict is present, introduce conflict-resolution processes or supervisor capability to navigate this.
• If shifts are fatiguing, redesign rosters, add rest breaks, or rotate tasks.
• If communication is inconsistent, implement daily huddles or clear information-flow routines.

Capturing hazards and controls formally signals that psychological risks are just as real, and just as manageable as physical risks.

It enables leaders and teams to assess levels of harm, take action early and continuously improve the working environment.

ISO 45003 gives us the framework, but it is our daily actions, conversations, and commitment to genuine worker engagement that bring it to life.

When we design systems that protect, support and empower our people, we build workplaces where wellbeing and performance grow together, creating stronger, safer, and more productive manufacturing environments across Aotearoa.

For a downloadable summary of the standard and deeper insights, click here:

Why Lean Starts With Psychological Safety