STRESS. WHY BOTHER?

The UK Government is going to focus on workplace stress over the next few years.

It is a key element in the HSE thinking.

You NEED to be aware of the new rules and requirements

Some reports on the cost of stress

Approximately 13 million working days lost due to work-related stress (HSE 2001/2004)

The HSE estimates that British industry loses £370 million a year because of stress, while the cost to society as a whole could be £3.75 billion.

The Sunday Times Reports (18th May 1997)

"In Britain 270,000 people take time off work each day due to stress related illness!"

A report published by Gee Publishing (3rd Oct. 1999) States:

"Stress has overtaken the common cold as the biggest cause of sickness from work. One in five companies with more than 1000 staff describe stress as a major problem"

The report continues

"Growing evidence of the impact of stress on absence levels, coupled with recent legal awards against companies seems to have made this problem too big to ignore"

Stress News April 2000 reports>

The effects (of stress) on British Industry are huge. Low performance, self-esteem and reduced productivity have helped to lose Britain £10.2bn in lost productivity in 1998 alone (as reported by the CBI) .

A report by MORI November 1999 showed
60% of the working population are affected by stress at work

Job stress has been estimated to cost American industry $150 billion per year in absenteeism, diminished productivity, compensation claims, health insurance and direct medical expenses To get some perspective, these costs are more than 15 times that of all strikes combined.
Janet Cahill, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, Rowan College of New Jersey Paul A. Landsbergis, Ed.D., M.P.H., Hypertension Center, Cornell University Medical College Peter L. Schnall, M.D., M.P.H., Center for Social Epidemiology
Presented at the Work Stress and Health '95 Conference. September 1995, Washington D.C.

Stress is now the number one reason behind sickness from work
(Gee Publishing survey to 1999)

More than 70 per cent of working adults have experienced stress at work in the past year
(ISMA survey summer 2000)

"Stress in the workplace is undermining performance and productivity in 9 out of 10 companies."
(Industrial Society in 1997)

One in five workers reported feeling extremely stressed work. This equals 5 million workers in the UK.
(Bristol Stress and Health at Work Study. 2000)

Three-quarters of executives say that stress adversely affect their health, happiness and home life as well as their performance at work.
(Institute of Management Survey. 2000)

The Office of National Statistics reports that approximately one in seven adults in Britain (excluding those in institutions) has some form of diagnosable mental health problem, the most common being anxiety with depression. The symptoms most frequently reported are
Fatigue, Sleep Problems, Irritability and Worry.
These are some of the classic symptoms of Stress!

For a comprehensive report on Job Stress by the
American Institute of Stress
click here

No organisation thrives by wasting resources.
T.L.C. Stress Management Services will help you overcome these problems.

Page last modified: 26th August 2007