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Advances in robotics now permit humans to work collaboratively with robots. However, humans often feel unsafe working alongside robots. Our knowledge of how to help humans overcome this issue is limited by two challenges. One, it is difficult, expensive and time-consuming to prototype robots and set up various work situations needed to conduct studies in this area. Two, we lack strong theoretical models to predict and explain perceived safety and its influence on human–robot work collaboration (HRWC). To address these issues, we introduce the Robot Acceptance Safety Model (RASM) and employ immersive virtual environments (IVEs) to examine perceived safety of working on tasks alongside a robot. Results from a between-subjects experiment done in an IVE show that separation of work areas between robots and humans increases perceived safety by promoting team identification and trust in the robot. In addition, the more participants felt it was safe to work with the robot, the more willing they were to work alongside the robot in the future.

This study deals with the Human Reliability Analysis. A causal methodology is used to report the dynamic responses over time of humans at work. This structure is mounted inside a main framework which includes multi criteria decisions about main and subsidiaries concepts that influence the work-stress and the operations management. Factors and variables from the Human, Team, Work, Environment behavior are considered and declined in constant, measurable and depended elements with inter and intra level connections. Contextualization in a safety based approach is reported as per different tasks in a motor company. Calibration on humans and assembly tasks is reported under a dynamic simulation across levels, auxiliary variables and constants. Critical influencing factors for human reliability at work are identified and modelled.

Safety and health at work has, according to the European policies, a key role both in increasing employment, including through the prevention of premature withdrawal of employees from the labor market and in increasing competitiveness and economic performance of European enterprises. The paper makes an initial brief presentation of the main provisions of European and national policies on health and safety at work, then continues with an analysis of statistical data regarding the situation of health and safety at work for employees in EU-27. A special attention is paid to detailed analysis of recent data, from the National Institute of Statistics, on the situation concerning occupational accidents and professional diseases in our country, including factors that determine them, depending on sex, residence area, age group, economic activity, number of absence days due to health problems caused or aggravated by work.