STRESS AUDITS
Organisations are slowly
becoming increasingly aware of the consequences of work-related stress. There seems little doubt that the effects of
stress are costing the U.K. economy billions of pounds every year. It cannot be
ignored as it is probably already affecting your organisation in terms of sickness absence, turnover of staff and loss
of productivity.
The various physiological and
psychological outcomes of work-related stress can have disastrous consequences
for both the individual and the organisation. Civil litigation against an
employer for causing or allowing undue and unnecessary work-based stress to
occur may be unusual at the moment, but as people become more aware of the
issues these cases are certain to increase along with the size of the awards. The results of stress undoubtedly represent
a major cause of short-term sickness absenteeism and for some of those
remaining at work, a reduction in effectiveness and productivity. There can be
little doubt that it is in everybody’s best interests to keep work-based stress
to a minimum.
Stress in not a new
phenomenon, but it can be a highly complex issue. What acts as a stressor for
one person may not do so for another. Some people are more pre-disposed to
suffer stress than others and to make matters worse, the effects of stress may
vary quite considerably between individuals. Most people think they know what
stress is, unfortunately this may only apply to you as it is a highly
individualistic syndrome. Organisations need to be aware of all aspects of the
likely causes and results of stress.
The effects of stress can be
tackled at the level of the individual employee. However, by far the best way
to address the issue, and the most economical in the long term, is to remove or
moderate the actual stressors i.e. the causes of stress. This will have the greatest beneficial
impact on the largest number of people and therefore be the most cost effective
approach. This method should also
result in long-term improvement and not merely in a short-term reduction or
masking of the problem. There is probably no such thing as a stress free
environment, but what a properly conducted audit should achieve is the
identification of those issues that are likely to be problematic for the
individual employees and financially devastating for the organisation.
Stress has crept into our everyday
language to such an extent that we often tend to ignore it. This must change if
organisations wish to maintain an advantage over competitors. Stress is an area
that is undoubtedly already costing your organisation money, but if it is dealt
with effectively you can expect increased efficiency and profitability. The
competitive edge you have over your rival organisations is your employees,
select them correctly, use them properly and the rewards can be long term.
There is much organisations can do and perhaps one of the best starting places
is to understand what stress is, how it affects people, who it effects and what
can be done about it. A short intensive course for managerial level
employees can be provided by Psychol which gives a relatively in
depth understanding of the problem. The people running these courses are
experienced chartered occupational psychologists. Our
training is designed and run by experts .
Training can be
regarded as a first step, however, Psychol
consultants are happy to discuss any issues of work-related stress with you and
establish what particular requirements you may have, whether you wish to set up
a preventative scheme, individual type analyses or a company or departmental
audit.
mailto:op.services@psychol.co.uk