Spain : EESST 2023-2027 : six objectives, 197 occupational safety measures
Health and safety work has no boundaries. After recognising the French plan PST 2026-2030 and the National Strategy italiana 2026-2030, today we explore the Spanish model – the Estrategia Española de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo (EESST) 2023-2027. An ambitious document, resulting from 17 months of negotiation, which defines the framework of the public policies of prevention of occupational risks until 2027.
A document born from social dialogue
The Council of Ministers, meeting on 14 March 2023, approved the Estrategia Española de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo (EESST) 2023-2027, fruit of the consensus between the General Administration of the State, the Autonomous Communities and partners . This Strategy intends to be a new framework of reference andbsp;whichinspires public policies of prevention of occupational risks.
It is the third strategy negotiated in the country, which was born at a time especially complicated where we assist the deterioro of the conditions of work and safety and health of the working population after the pandemic.
Six strategic objectives, 197 measures
The Estrategia Española de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo (EESST) 2023-2027 has been configured as a joint work framework between Public Administrations and Social Partners, supported by the commitment and collaboration of all actors. On 8 April 2025, the Ministry of Labour and Social Economy in collaboration with the Instituto Nacional de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo (INSST) presented the new Action Plan 2025-2027. This Action Plan 2025-2027, with a total of 197 measures, gives continuity to the actions initiated in the first action plan.
The six strategic objectives of the EESST 2023-2027 are:
Objective #1 — Improve the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases
It is a priority of this Strategy to improve the prevention of accidents at work by affecting research and knowledge of the causes that arise, by stepping up awareness actions on risks and possible harm to health, as well as by advising and supporting businesses.
Objective 1 — Improvement of accident prevention at work and occupational diseases — includes 84 measures in the Action Plan 2025-2027.
Specific attention goes to cancer of professional origin. The prevention of cancer of professional origin has a very relevant space in the strategy, with particular attention to asbestos, the breathing powder of crystalline silica and the wood powder as agents causing disease. It is particularly important to incorporate a National Agenda for the Prevention of Cancer of professional origin.
Objective #2 — Managing changes in new forms of work organization, demographic evolution and climate change
The management of risks arising from new forms of work organization, demographic evolution and climate change is decisively addressed, putting emphasis on the need to manage the increase of exposure to ergonomic risks and, above all, psychosocial, including actions aimed at teleworking, age management, product distribution works or goods through digital platforms, digital disconnection.
Objective 2 includes 38 measures in the Action Plan 2025-2027.
A distinctive element of the Spanish model : from 2025, each employer is obliged to produce a written protocol on digital disconnection — setting clear limits on availability outside working hours. An obligation without equivalent in France or Italy.
Objective #3 — Improve safety and health management in SMEs
Small enterprises continue to have more difficulty in carrying out effective preventive activity.
EESST explicitly recognizes this asymmetry and provides specific tools to integrate occupational risk prevention in small businesses, promoting greater involvement of own resources.
Objective #4 — Strengthen mental health and manage psychosocial risks
EESST’s action lines include fundamental subjects such as mental health, equality between men and women, professional cancer, road safety and climate change.
Since 2025, burn-out is formally recognized as a professional risk requiring specific evaluation and management. A pioneering measure in Europe.
Objective #5 — Protect vulnerable workers
The Strategy proposes actions aimed at raising the level of protection of working collectives in a situation of greater vulnerability, such as higher age groups and young people, self-employed persons, with disabilities, migrants, health and social sectors, home care and home service.
Objective #6 — Improving institutions and coordination mechanisms
The EESST aims to consolidate public policies and strengthen the role of social partners and institutional bodies, enhancing social dialogue on health and safety.
Action Plan 2025-2027 : 197 concrete measures
The Action Plan 2025-2027, with a total of 197 measures, gives continuity to actions initiated in the first action plan and incorporates new measures to achieve a greater degree of fulfilment of the objectives and lines of action of the Strategy. Each measure has assigned process and/or result indicators, which will facilitate monitoring, impulse and evaluation of the Strategy.
The situation of accidents in Spain
In the last decade the incidence indices of working leftility remained virtually stable in all sectors. Certain activities reflect indices higher than the average values of the sector, at the same time that certain workers have a greater risk of suffering health damage.
It is this worrying stability — not a reduction, not an increase, but a stagnation — which prompted the Spanish Government to launch the EESST 2023-2027 with a more structural and ambitious approach.
What concretely means for companies operating in Spain
The EESST 2023-2027 is not just a programmatic document. It is a clear signal of strengthening the controls and inspections of work (ITSS).
Five concrete actions that every company operating in Spain can start today:
— Verify compliance with Law 31/1995 on the prevention of occupational risks
— Draft and implement digital disconnection protocol
— Integrate the assessment of psychosocial risks in DVR
— Activate specific programmes for vulnerable workers
— Training managers to manage risks related to telework and digital platforms
Conclusion
The Estrategia Española de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo 2023-2027 aspires to lograr entornos de trabajo seguros y saludables, which contribute positively to the health of workers and the progress of enterprises and society.
2026 was declared the year of safety and health at work in Spain on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Law 31/1995. An anniversary that is not a celebration, but a renewed commitment.