Occupational Wellness Interventions to Promote Workforce Health, Safety and Productivity

Occupational wellness and safety are foundational elements in contemporary workforce management, as modern working environments increasingly expose employees to physical, mental, and social risks stemming from lifestyle behaviors and demanding job conditions. The widespread adoption of sedentary and unhealthy lifestyles, combined with challenging and often suboptimal workplace environments, now presents pressing occupational health and safety concerns. This has led to significant declines in workers’ health-related quality of life, as well as to diminished productivity, intensifying both social and economic burdens. Ongoing debates highlight the complexities of integrating wellness with safety compliance, the optimal balance between personal health promotion and organizational responsibility, and the need to close persistent gaps in the implementation and efficacy of workplace interventions.

An expanding body of evidence shows that physical inactivity and unhealthy behaviors among the workforce are linked to reduced earnings, increased absenteeism, early retirement, and heightened disability risks. In response, multifaceted non-pharmacological interventions—spanning structured physical activity, ergonomic improvements, nutritional guidance, mental health support, and proactive safety practices—have been developed and studied for their dual capacity to protect worker health and prevent illness, injury, and disability. Concerns remain regarding the integration of these interventions across diverse sectors, harmonizing health promotion with occupational safety protocols, and optimizing their long-term impact at both individual and organizational levels.

Considering these points, this Research Topic aims to highlight recent scientific advancements in occupational wellness and safety interventions that promote both health and productivity. By focusing on evidence-based strategies that address exercise, ergonomics, mental health, nutrition, substance use, sleep, and comprehensive health and safety measures, this collection seeks global contributions examining outcomes across a variety of workplace contexts and occupational categories. The overarching objective is to deepen understanding of how integrated interventions can advance workers’ health, reduce occupational hazards, and foster more productive, resilient organizations.

This Research Topic is bounded by its focus on workplace-based wellness and safety interventions influencing both individual health outcomes and broader occupational health and productivity indicators. To gather further insights in this area, this collection welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:
o Design, implementation, and evaluation of occupational health, safety, and wellness programs.
o Synergies between physical activity, ergonomic interventions, and safety compliance.
o Interventions addressing nutrition, tobacco, alcohol, and sleep, and their interaction with occupational exposures and risk.
o Workplace mental health, stress mitigation, and injury/incident prevention.
o Economic and social impacts of integrated occupational health and safety initiatives.
o Barriers and facilitators to sustained adoption and compliance of OHS and wellness programs.
o Sector-specific and cross-industry approaches to emerging occupational health and safety risks.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: occupational wellness, workplace, work efficiency, corporate wellbeing, physical activity, exercise, ergonomics, healthy behaviors

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.