MITCH: Workplace stress in Belgium
Understanding, preventing, and transforming workplace stress in Belgium: a four-track research and intervention programme supervised by Ilan Tojerow and Vanessa De Greef (ULB)

Partner

Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)

Lead

Ilan Tojerow and Vanessa De Greef

Duration

Since 1 February 2026

Funded by

Helios Foundation

Why this matters

Work-related stress and psychosocial risks weigh on individuals, employers, and the social-security system alike. Mental wellbeing at work is one of the Helios Foundation’s two strategic priorities. MITCH tackles the problem on four fronts at once: measuring it, building digital tools against it, training professionals, and strengthening how it is taught.

About the project

The project started on 1 February 2026 under the supervision of Ilan Tojerow and Vanessa De Greef (ULB), and runs along four tracks.

The MITCH tool and mapping. The team is evaluating the existing MITCH tool, and the data needed to map workplace stress and psychosocial risks in Belgium have been identified and structured.

A workplace wellbeing chatbot. A digital tool in design. Early work includes meetings with professors working with artificial intelligence, with the Federal Public Service for Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue, and with designers of similar tools. A researcher is being trained in this kind of tool design.

Continuing education. A training programme on workplace wellbeing is being shaped through a mapping of existing training content and needs, and meetings with the organisations that created existing courses.

Teaching at Solvay. The team is reviewing the existing hours of wellbeing teaching offered to Solvay students within the SSO programme, with meetings with the programme team and the dean planned in the coming two months.

Current status of the project

1
Team & framing
Research team fully recruited; first meetings with field actors held; exploratory exchanges and project framing complete.
2
In progress
Evaluation of the MITCH tool; chatbot design consultations and researcher training; mapping of training content and needs; discussions on the Solvay wellbeing module.
3
Next milestones
Stabilisation of partnerships; validation of the evaluated course programmes; first scientific event on 8 October 2026, with publicity over the summer.

A timeline of the project developments

1 Feb 2026
Programme starts
Feb-Apr 2026
Initiating work on all four tracks
Mid-2026
Evaluation of the MITCH tool completed (estimated horizon: 3 months from the spring 2026 report)
Summer 2026
Publicity for the first scientific event
8 Oct 2026
First scientific event
Around end 2026
Chatbot development completed (estimated horizon: 8 months)
Around mid-2027
Continuing-education programme constructed (estimated horizon: 1 year)

Expected impact

Mapping

A robust picture of workplace stress and psychosocial risks in Belgium, developed alongside the evaluation of the MITCH tool.

Prevention

A chatbot to help identify, prevent, and address psychosocial risks at work.

Skills

A continuing-education programme that strengthens the wellbeing skills of professionals.

Teaching

Strengthened workplace-wellbeing teaching at Solvay through the SSO programme.

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