Without a doubt chronic and life altering stress exists in every workplace however for many organisations it seems to be an invisible elephant in the room. Everyone knows it exists and is significantly increased by the workplace. Everyone knows it impacts productivity, but few take responsibility and implement actions or initiatives to relieve the outcomes until breaking point kicks in.....Chronic stress is a killer. It causes or aggravates high blood pressure, diabetes, depression and addictions, and immune suppression. It's implicated in infertility in women, sleeplessness, gastro-intestinal problems, slower wound repair and memory loss.
Health Canada found that stress caused by conflict in work or family costs Canadian businesses an estimated $3.5 billion each year in absenteeism. It put the cost of mental health problems, where stress is sometimes a factor, at $35 billion a year.
In the U.K., the government's Health and Safety Executive describes stress as the No. 1 cause of lost time at work, responsible for 13 million lost workdays in 2005.
The American Institute of Stress estimates the cost of work-related stress to the U.S. economy – loss of productivity, absenteeism, accidents, employee turnover, medical bills and insurance costs – at $300 billion annually.
The Whitehall studies, led by Sir Michael Marmot, professor of epidemiology and public health at University College, London. examined almost 30,000 British civil servants over more than three decades. They found what they called the "social gradient": The lower an employee was in the work hierarchy, the higher the rate of heart disease, mental illness, chronic lung disease, gastrointestinal disease, suicide, depression and back pain.
In the wake of 2009, a time where jobs were shed and roles became engulfed with additional responsibilities, many frontline workers have been stretched to maximum capacity, to deliver more with less. 2010 provides an opportunity to place fresh eyes over your organisation and the way your people are working.
1. Demonstrating sincere concern for your people and the level of stress that has been endured is the first step to relieving stress. Many people firstly want to be appreciated for their efforts.
2. Critically assessing department and individuals role and responsibilities to ensure you have the right people doing the right things is a powerful way of creating some freedom in the workplace.
3. Focus on outcomes and contribution rather than hours and tasks.
4. Walk the talk – implement processes or strategies to help them manage or eliminate stress in the workplace. Simple things like flexible work practises or monthly RDO’s can help relieve the pressure of trying to manage both work and home life.
5. Education – For most, stress will always be a part of life. Education around time and energy management, diet and fitness can help provide tools that can broaden a person’s capacity or tolerance for situations. Here the focus is on turning what would ordinarily be seen as a stressful situation into something taken in one’s stride.
Ask yourself the question....How can our organisation make life easier for our employees?
