Lizbeth García: "NOM 035 sets a precedent".

We spoke with psychologist Lizbeth García about NOM 035 and its implications.

The work context is made up of a good part of the spaces in which we spend the most time each week; therefore, it is normal for psychology to be interested in studying the way in which people interact with these environments and with other co-workers, and to intervene to improve the quality of life of people in these areas.

NOM 035, a set of standards promoted since 2019 in Mexico.is an example of how important it is to take into account these psychosocial factors that come into play in the operation of companies and any entity dedicated to professional work. In this case, psychologist Lizbeth García, part of the management team of Astronauta Emocional, talks to us about it.

Interview with Lizbeth García (Astronauta Emocional): the NOM 035 and its effects

Lizbeth García is a psychologist specializing in Clinical Psychology and founding member of the psychotherapy center Astronauta Emocionalas well as promoter of the podcast "De Otro Planeta" (From Another Planet). In this interview she talks to us about the particularities of NOM 035, a standard that shows how reforms at the political level can have implications for Work and Organizational Psychology.

What is NOM 035 and what are its main objectives?

NOM 035 is a standard implemented as of 2019 in Mexico, which aims to identify, analyze and prevent psychosocial risk factors that could affect workers derived from their working conditions, and also takes into account that the collaborator develops in healthy work environments.

Currently, all workplaces in Mexico are responsible for monitoring the well-being of their employees to prevent stress issues derived from their work.

Some of the responsibilities that each organization has as an obligation are, in the first place, to analyze and implement a psychosocial risk prevention policy. This should take into account the prevention of psychosocial risk factors in general, of situations of workplace violence, and the promotion of an adequate organizational environment.

Secondly, it should include the detection and referral of employees who have suffered a severe traumatic event.

The company is also responsible for applying the necessary measures and actions, based on the results found in the reference guides, and for establishing and disseminating psychosocial risk prevention policies.

On the other hand, it must also practice and carry out medical and psychological examinations when workers exposed to psychosocial risks are detected.

It must also keep records of the prevention activities being carried out.

And finally, it must have among its work policies, a complaints box where each employee can report acts of workplace violence.

Depending on the size of the company, there are questionnaire guides that must be applied to employees in order to have a first analysis of the emotional and health situation of the employee.

What are the social and labor problems and needs that have given rise to this reform?

Mexico is currently among the countries with the highest work stress in the world, added to the fact that working hours are longer than in other countries, which results in employees experiencing constant fatigue, low productivity and high turnover.

Because of this, this standard aims to have better working conditions, which includes having adequate tools, established roles and mainly to take care and prevent psychosocial risks.

What types of psychosocial risks has NOM 035 focused on, and how does it regulate the activity of companies?

Psychosocial risks are all those psychological and social aspects that could negatively affect workers, such as stress, anxiety, sleep problems derived from the type of work they perform, in general it includes the following items:

• Excessive workloads that generate stress.
• Interference between private and work life.
• Negative leadership in the workplace.
• Unfavorable work environment within the company.
• Traumatic events such as assaults, serious accidents, death, kidnappings and threats.

With this standard, each company must take the necessary measures to care for and prevent the well-being of its employees in terms of emotional health.

The progressive disappearance of the dividing line between people's private lives and their professional careers is often criticized. Can it be understood that NOM 035 contributes to blur this separation even more?

On the contrary, this standard helps to give space to private life and emotional balance within your workplace, since its main objective is to establish the necessary tools and climate to promote a favorable work environment. This standard takes into account issues such as stress and anxiety derived from high workloads, leadership or not having defined and delimited the responsibilities of your position.

In your opinion, what are the main virtues and limitations of this legislative reform?

NOM 035 sets a precedent for the care of workers' mental health and allows for increasingly better working conditions, resulting in a balance between work and family life. Companies also stand to gain from this initiative as it promotes a culture of leadership and loyalty to their employer brand.

However, as this is a newly created law, the scope of responsibilities that correspond to both the employee and the company is still unclear. On the other hand, although all companies are obliged to apply NOM 035 and its respective prevention measures, this does not mean that these measures are evaluated by a government agency to ensure that the measures are necessary and sufficient.

How does Astronauta Emocional help to comply with NOM 035?

In Astronauta Emocional, we have an emotional wellness service exclusively for companies, where clinical psychologists can make intervention plans for those employees who may present any psychosocial risk in the areas of stress, anxiety or any traumatic event.

Our service includes emotional support to employees, webinars every month to promote mental health, mental health campaigns, as well as reports aligned to the human resources strategy, with this service you can meet the employer obligations of NOM 035.