The executive answer: what should company leaders do?
Treat psychosocial risks as part of operational management and employer compliance. Review workload, working hours, autonomy, supervisory practice and harassment reporting. Then adopt and document corrective measures. Employee resilience sessions are supplementary—not a replacement for prevention at the source.
What the ILO’s October 2026 note means for business
On October 9, 2026, the International Labour Organization (ILO) published a non-exhaustive technical review of healthy psychosocial environments at work across ten Latin American countries, including Ecuador. It documents progress in regulation, assessment tools, labor inspection and action against violence and harassment, while identifying persistent implementation challenges.
According to the ILO’s presentation of global estimates, five psychosocial work factors—job strain, effort-reward imbalance, job insecurity, long working hours and workplace bullying—are associated with more than 840,000 deaths annually worldwide from specified cardiovascular and mental conditions. Approximately 9.5% occur in the Americas. This is a global modeled association, not an Ecuadorian count of deaths caused by stress.
The ILO also reports that around 35% of workers globally work more than 48 hours per week, while nearly 23% worldwide have experienced violence or harassment at work during their working lives. The latter estimate exceeds 34% in the Americas. Regional and global statistics should motivate prevention, not be misrepresented as findings for a specific company.
A management principle
You cannot solve persistently excessive workloads by asking employees to become better at handling stress.
Ecuador’s legal framework: a quick orientation for international employers
In Ecuador, a Ministerial Agreement is a regulation issued by the Ministry of Labor. Its Ministerial Agreement MDT-2025-186 sets out requirements for managing workplace psychosocial risks in the private sector. It requires all private employers, regardless of workforce size, to manage preventive action in accordance with applicable technical rules.
Private employers with 10 or more workers must additionally develop, implement and register a psychosocial risk prevention program and an internal protocol addressing discrimination, violence and harassment at work. For employers with one to nine workers, the agreement points to the Ministry’s guidance on preventing discrimination, violence and harassment. Registration procedures for the program refer to MDT-2024-196. Public-sector institutions operate under a separate framework; businesses should obtain legal guidance specific to their structure.
The Ministry makes available a free 58-question, eight-dimension psychosocial risk questionnaire. Its accompanying application guide does not make this particular questionnaire mandatory: a different instrument may be used when supported by evidence of validity and reliability. In any case, conducting a questionnaire without acting on its findings does not amount to meaningful prevention.
Five operational decisions for executives and HR teams
1 · Assess the work
Look at pace, staffing, unrealistic deadlines, overtime and the actual freedom employees have to organize tasks.
2 · Make reporting safe
Evaluate whether harassment and violence complaints can be raised confidentially and resolved without retaliation.
3 · Connect the data
Use aggregate overtime, absenteeism, turnover and contract records to check survey results without exposing individuals.
4 · Change the source
Redesign scheduling, workload allocation and supervisory practices before relying on training alone.
5 · Verify progress
Assign owners and deadlines and repeat assessment to find out whether exposure has decreased.
LGBT+ workplace inclusion as a prevention priority
The ILO’s note argues for attention to gender, but does not provide a distinct finding on sexual orientation or gender identity. As an additional management question, employers can examine whether hostile remarks, barriers to promotion, pressure to conceal identity or ineffective reporting channels may intensify workplace risks for LGBT+ staff. This is a proposal for company-level assessment, not a statistic or conclusion attributed to the ILO.
Ecuador’s Organic Law on Personal Data Protection classifies sexual orientation and gender identity as sensitive information. Employee surveys must have an appropriate legal basis and purpose, collect only necessary information and protect confidentiality. For small teams, the likelihood of identifying individuals through supposedly anonymous results deserves special attention. Companies can often examine discriminatory behavior and reporting processes without asking workers to disclose their identity.
A responsible pilot: scope, evidence and follow-up
For a single workplace or department, an initial project can combine a validated assessment with practical records, structured employee participation and a clearly assigned corrective-action plan. The emphasis should be on causes and measurable follow-up, not the number of questionnaires distributed.
Important: a psychosocial risk assessment is not an individual clinical examination, a certification or a standalone guarantee of legal compliance. Every engagement should define scope and obligations before work starts.
FAQ: business compliance and workplace mental health in Ecuador
Is the ILO’s October 2026 note a new mandatory law?
No. It is technical analysis. Ecuador’s obligations come from the applicable national regulatory framework.
Which Ecuadorian private employers need a psychosocial prevention program?
Under Ministerial Agreement MDT-2025-186, employers with 10 or more workers have specific program and protocol duties; every private employer must manage psychosocial prevention.
Is the Ministry’s 58-item questionnaire compulsory?
No. The Ministry’s guidance permits another instrument when its validity and reliability are appropriately supported.
What makes a workplace risk program credible?
A valid assessment, documented risk-reduction measures, accountable managers, meaningful worker participation and follow-up evidence.
Official references
Ecuador Ministry of Labor: Agreement MDT-2025-186.
Ecuador Ministry of Labor: official questionnaire guide.
Further reading in Spanish: Cámara Plus, employer-focused article and Diane Rodríguez, professional English-language analysis.
