Corporate
I have worked in the corporate environment, including FTSE 10, for more than 30 years within HR and Organisational Psychology where I specialised in Work Related Stress Management and Bullying and Harassment. In 2012 I was the only Work-related stress management trainer with training accredited by the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH).
We are a stressed nation, especially at work:
Mental Health Foundation commissioned the largest and most comprehensive survey in the UK, it reported in 2020:
- 74% of UK adults felt Overwhelmed and unable to cope.
- 32% of adults stated they had experienced suicidal feelings as a result of stress.
Stress has been an issue in the workplace for many years and is still increasing in both cost and the amounts of cases.
According to the Labour Force Survey (LFS)
Rate of work-related Stress, depression or anxiety (new or long-standing) per 100,000 workers in 2020/21
In the recent years prior to the coronavirus pandemic, the rate of self-reported work- related stress, depression or anxiety had shown signs of increasing. In 2020/21 the rate was higher than the 2018/19 pre-coronavirus levels.
In 2020/21 stress, depression or anxiety accounted for at least 50% of all work-related ill health cases. The majority of cases being in professional occupations and large organisations. CIPD report that stress continues to be the largest cause of both short-term and long-term absence. reported 79% of organisations reported some stress absence in 2022. In organisations of 250+ employees that figure increased to 90%
The HSE reports in 2019/20 that 17.9 million working days were lost to stress.
The costs of mental ill health in the workplace, according to Deloitte, is estimated at £45 Billion per annum with Presenteeism (When someone is in the workplace despite being unwell with mental health reasons) accounting for between £26 and £29 billion in lost productivity.
Bullying and Harassment is one of the causes of work-related stress. Creating a toxic culture that waterfalls throughout the organisation. Bullying can be manager to employee, but is often peer to peer and even employee to manager. If a person feels they are being bullied, whether intentionally or not, their body responds as if they are and they will remain in a chronic stress state, leading to ill health.
As an employer, you have a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 to protect your employees. This includes both physical and mental health. If an employee is bullied and feels they have no recourse and no choice but to resign, then you could face a claim of Constructive Dismissal.
Employers also have a legal duty to conduct a stress risk assessment and to act upon the findings. Are you doing this?
If you need an expert to help your organisation with stress, then contact bren@innersolutions.eu or bren@toxicrelationship.co.uk or call 07511929020
My company can conduct stress risk assessments, identify the issues and suggest remedial action using the stress management standards. We can also train employees how to manage their work-related stress and train managers how to manage stress cases by providing helpful, educative tools and to manage any identified risks.