Simon Olliff, Managing Director of Banyard Solutions
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) defines stress as “the adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them”. While experiencing stress at work may seem normal, excessive feelings of it can be all-consuming, affecting an individual’s emotional, mental and physical wellbeing. It is important that employers consider and identify the significant stress risks at work, and implement positive change to help prevent harm to employee health.
Workload pressures, including tight deadlines, excess of responsibility and a lack of managerial support tend to be the main causes. In 2016/17, it was reported 526,000 workers suffered from work-related stress, depression or anxiety, with 12.5 million working days lost . Despite it being such a widespread problem, affecting the best of us on a daily basis, stress is not considered a reportable occupational injury under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR), even when accompanied by a medical certificate stating it is work-related, because it is argued “it does not result from a single definable accident” . We would question why work-related stress is considered a lesser condition when it can, in some cases, be more debilitating than an isolated physical injury?
PRESSURES ON EMPLOYEES
Often pressures in the workplace are unavoidable due to workload demands and tight deadlines. To keep up pace safety procedures can go amiss, leaving individuals and those around them in greater jeopardy . It’s no secret that construction is an industry where workers face substantial stress and suffer from mental health issues. Last year (2017) in the government-commissioned review, Thriving at Work, 40 recommendations were made in order to better equip construction industry bosses to improve mental health in the workplace, including urging employers to create a mental health at work plan and encouraging open conversations.
There is the widespread view that stress is a turmoil of life: something that you can get over and get on with. Some even argue that stress can be good, practical, motivating and shows an individual cares. Given this perception, it’s easier for employers to shrug off stress by claiming stress encourages efficiency, essentially justifying harm.
EMPLOYER RESPONSIBILITY
Employers have a legal duty to protect employees from stress at work by doing a risk assessment and implementing measures to protect against stressors. According to HSE, there are six main areas that can lead to work-related stress – demands, control, support, relationships, role and change. Stress affects people differently, what stresses one person may not affect another. Employers should look out for a number of signs for stress, including: mood swings, lateness or increase in absence, decreased performance, loss of motivation, commitment and confidence . Another point to consider is the impact of stress on a worker’s mental health.
Employers can help to manage and prevent stress by improving conditions at work, this in turn can help support mental health at work, creating a more positive working environment.
Not only is there a moral reason for employers to create a positive working environment with less stress, there are also a host of business benefits accruing from managing stress in the workplace, including: reduced worker absence, improved workplace morale and employee satisfaction, increased productivity, and protection from reputational damage and financial costs through prosecution or litigation.
Unfortunately, stress is not something we can eradicate fully, but employers can take steps to assess the risks and support their workers where possible. As we’ve seen, stress can affect anyone and everyone, an epidemic problem that has a harsh impact on staff morale and business production. In reality, it’s in a business’s best interest to look after their workforce and help to relieve the burden of stress.