Minimising Workplace Stress

With over 13.8 million working days lost annually, stress is the second biggest cause of work related ill health in the UK today.  According to the TUC’s biennial survey, three in five (60%) safety reps reported that stress or overwork was a concern in their workplace.  Stress was reported as the biggest concern in 10 of the 14 sectors represented.  Brendan Barber, General Secretary of the TUC, reflected “Stress casts a gloomy shadow over far too many UK workplaces.  And as the current economic crisis creates more anxiety about job security, stress is likely to increase”.

To mark this year’s National Stress Awareness Day, System Concepts held a client networking evening on 6 November.  The event highlighted the causes of work related stress and illustrated how employers can take practical action to reduce employee stress by minimising stressors in the workplace.

Stress Management Standards 

During the evening, Liz Skelton, Senior Consultant, explained the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE’s) Stress Management Standards.  She illustrated how employers can develop a robust strategy and take a proactive approach to preventing work related stress through staff surveys, risk assessments and focus groups.  She pointed out that “by carefully communicating to employees and managers about the causes of work related stress, you can help them distinguish between positive pressure (a motivator that can help them succeed) and negative stress, which can cause illness and employee absence”.

What do the Standards mean in practice? 

John Fitzpatrick and Jo Hare, both consultants at System Concepts, then explored what the HSE Stress Management Standards meant in practice.  They demonstrated how we have successfully applied the approach in System Concepts and reduced the risk of stress for their workforce.  Tom Stewart, Joint Managing Director said “When we embarked on the stress survey, the board were terrified of what the results were going to be.  However, when we got the results, we were extremely pleased with how our employees responded and how they gave positive, practical suggestions on how we can improve our workplace”.    

Using case studies and discussions, John and Jo also worked with delegates to find practical low cost solutions to a number of different scenarios. These  included how to reduce the demands on employees, how managers can support employees and how employees can feel more in control of their day to day work.

Technology and stress 

Tom Stewart also gave some food for thought on how technology can impact on stress.  He discussed how employees can become addicted to new mobile technology, creating a “crackberry” culture.  He encouraged delegates to develop a “chooseberry” culture within their organisations, where employees can use technology to enhance their work/life balance.

System Concepts have been shortlisted for a National Business Award for our workplace wellbeing strategy, which encompassed implementing the stress management standards.

You can successfully implement the HSE’s Stress Management Standards within your organisation and develop a robust wellbeing strategy to reduce sickness absence from illnesses that can be caused by work related stress.  To find out more about how to do this, contact liz@system-concepts.com