Workforce Health Across the Value Chain 2025

Introduction This report is the product of a year-long research collaboration between Mercer and the World Economic Forum’s Healthy Workforces initiative. To better understand how both climate-related risks and systemic gaps in access to healthcare affect supply-chain resilience, the research team conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with nearly 60 experts across industry, policy, finance and civil society. Participants reflected a deliberately balanced mix of perspectives, with the majority (just over half) drawn from private-sector enterprises and multinational corporations. These were complemented by voices from civil society, labour organizations and non- profit organizations, intergovernmental bodies, government agencies and academia – capturing both headquarters-level strategic insight and the grounded experience of those implementing policy, programmes and advocacy in diverse local contexts. These conversations – totalling more than 60 hours – were transcribed, thematically coded and triangulated with supporting literature to reveal patterns in how leaders are navigating these interdependent challenges. Further details on the methodology and participant profiles can be found in the Appendix. Across the interviews, certain consistent themes emerged. There was broad consensus across 79% of interviewees that supply-chain labour health and safety gaps were a source of business disruption and reputational risk. One-third of participants spoke about the “orphaned” nature of understanding supply-chain labour, remarking that it is often isolated within risk or compliance teams rather than considered a core business concern. At the same time, participants held nuanced and at times divergent views on how progress should be driven. Some emphasized regulation as essential for setting baselines and enabling long-term planning. One-third pointed to its role in levelling the playing field and inspiring strategy shifts – especially when backed by meaningful enforcement. But others voiced scepticism: 62.5% cited the complexity, fragmentation and compliance burden of current frameworks as obstacles to action. A smaller subset described poorly enforced mandates as counterproductive or symbolic. A second area of divergence emerged around private-sector responsibility. Nearly 90% of interviewees addressed the need for corporate leadership in workforce health and resilience – most viewing proactive investment as a competitive advantage. But barriers remain. Roughly a third cited short-termism and the challenge of quantifying return on investment. Nearly a quarter pointed to internal silos, limited visibility beyond Tier 1 suppliers and lack of coordination with public institutions as persistent constraints.4 The report structure reflects these complexities and builds on prior work at the Forum, including the Climate and Health Initiative,5 a publication on the role of insurers in navigating extreme heat,6 and a report on the economic cost of climate- health affects developed in collaboration with Oliver Wyman.7 The following sections trace the arc from shared recognition of health as a business asset through growing awareness of climate-related labour risks to emerging models of investment and collaboration: –Section 1 examines how organizations increasingly view worker health and well-being as a business asset – but protections often stop at direct employees. –Section 2 explores how climate volatility exacerbates health risks and exposes blind spots in labour protection and health systems capacity, particularly in vulnerable geographies. –Section 3 focuses on governance, emphasizing that alignment, accountability and internal clarity are essential to move from awareness to action. –Section 4 highlights promising models – from parametric insurance to co-financing – that strengthen labour resilience alongside societal health and well-being through proactive investment. –Section 5 looks beyond individual firms, spotlighting how collaboration with communities and across industries drives more durable and equitable supply-chain resilience. Taken together, these insights reflect a growing recognition: resilience strategies that overlook labour health are incomplete. But attention alone is not enough. This report surfaces the testimony of leaders grappling with these converging pressures – offering grounded, practical insights on where the conversation, and investment, is going next.Worker health is critical to supply- chain strategy. Leaders report growing momentum – and protection gaps. Workforce Health Across the Value Chain: Organizational Insights to Mitigate Risk and Create Sustainable Growth 5