Advancing research for a healthier, more inclusive workforce
Our mission
The Scottish Centre for Work and Health (SCWH) is a multi-institutional collaboration dedicated to improving health and work outcomes across Scotland and beyond. Bringing together experts from epidemiology, occupational medicine, public health, business studies, and psychology, our mission is to generate high-quality, policy-relevant research that addresses the evolving challenges of work and health.
Research areas
Our goal of ‘making work, work for everyone’ reflects the importance of individual workers, employers and economies in our research programme. While our work covers a broad range of subjects which affect people working in Scotland and beyond, our research programme has a focus on four specific areas:
1. The changing nature of work
Lead: Professor Gerard McCartney
The way people work is changing rapidly: hybrid and remote working is more common; artificial intelligence is transforming how jobs are carried out; and government policy is driving a shift away from fossil fuels. These changes affect what work is done, by whom, where and when — all in the context of financial pressures and evolving life roles. Our research will help understand these changes, identify emerging occupational hazards, and inform policy and practice to improve health and reduce inequalities.
2. Healthy working lives across the lifecourse
Lead: Professor Wendy Loretto
Workers face specific challenges at different life stages — from caring responsibilities to menopause, ageing, long-COVID, or chronic pain. Fatigue, cognitive impairment, and occupational stress all have strong implications for people’s ability to remain in work. Our research will investigate how these events affect work and health, and how impacts can be reduced through better work design, organisational policies, and individual and social support.
3. Supporting workers with long-term conditions to return to work
Lead: Dr Rosemary Hollick
Remaining in work is an important goal for many people living with long-term health conditions, and the UK’s rising economic inactivity underlines the urgency of better support. Sickness absence is a strong predictor of health-related job loss, and with multi-morbidity increasingly common, support must take a holistic rather than condition-specific approach. Building on the CMHW’s extensive work on musculoskeletal conditions, the SCWH will extend this across clinical conditions, identifying what works and for whom.
4. Preventing ill-health at work
Lead: Professor Rosalind Searle
Good work prevents ill-health; poor quality work and underemployment cause it. Research on occupational hazards can identify those most at risk and enable early intervention. The workplace is also a powerful setting for health promotion and social cohesion. Our research will investigate prevention-focused interventions at both population and workplace levels, including examining the costs and benefits of specific programmes.