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Stress In The Workplace
According to the Australian Council of Trade Unions’ (A.C.T.U.) 1997 survey, fifty per cent of workers had suffered some form of stress at work in a 12-month period. The statistics in care professions were even higher, with the Department of Education and Training in Western Australia reporting in its 2002 Attitudes To Teaching Survey that seventy per cent of teachers identified workplace stress as a cause for concern in their teaching positions.
Stress in the workplace is becoming a major concern for employers, managers and government agencies, owing to the Occupational Health and Safety legislations requiring employers to practice ‘duty of care’ by providing employees with safe working environments which also cover the psychological wellbeing of their staff.
One of the costs, for employers, of work place stress is absenteeism, with the A.C.T.U. reporting that owing to stress, nearly fifty per cent of employees surveyed had taken time off work. Other negative effects were reductions in productivity, reduced profits, accidents, high rates of sickness, increased workers’ compensation claims and high staff turnover, requiring recruiting and training of replacement staff.
While a certain amount of stress is needed to motivate individuals into action, prolonged stress can have a huge impact on overall health. More than two-thirds of visits to doctors’ surgeries are for stress-related illnesses. Stress has been linked to headaches, backaches, insomnia, anger, cramps, elevated blood pressure, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and lowered resistance to infection. For women, stress is a key factor in hormonal imbalances resulting in menstrual irregularities, PMS, fibroids, endometriosis and fertility problems. Stress can also be a factor in the development of almost all disease states including cancer and heart disease.
Each profession has its own unique factors that may cause stress; below are some causes of stress that cross many professions:
· Increased workload
· Organizational changes
· Lack of recognition
· High demands
· Lack of support
· Personal and family issues
· Poor work organization
· Lack of training
· Long or difficult hours
· Inadequate staff numbers and resources
· Poor management communication
· Lack of control or input
So what can be done to effectively manage workplace stress?
Organizations can:
· Educate their employees to recognise the signs of stress.
· Where possible, give their employees the chance to be involved in decisions and actions that affect their jobs.
· Improve employer-employee communications.
· Provide employees with
opportunities to socialise together.
· Be understanding of employees’ personal and family responsibilities.
· Ensure employee workloads suit their capabilities and resources (provide more training and resources if not).
· Provide support (internally or externally) for employees who have complex stress issues.
Employees can reduce their overall stress by:
· Regularly exercising, as this releases ‘happy hormones’.
· Eating a healthy diet, as stress depletes vital nutrients.
· Getting adequate rest.
· Using tea and lunch breaks to read, listen to a relaxation CD or have a five-minute power-nap.
· If appropriate, playing relaxing music at work and burning aromatherapy oils.
· Being more organized. Get up earlier to have more time.
· Delegating responsibility where possible. Say no!
· Taking time out to laugh by telling someone a joke. Start a laughter group: by standing in a circle and all forcing a big laugh, it will soon become real!
· Avoiding caffeine and sugar. Although this may provide an instant lift it later depletes the body of energy and nutrients.
· Taking time to do things that bring enjoyment and pleasure.
· Making the work environment pleasurable. Have relaxing sounds in the form of music or a water fountain. Have enjoyable smells by burning candles or aromatherapy oils. Hang beautiful pictures or posters on the walls; have photos or flowers on the desk.
· Taking care of their overall health and wellbeing by practising good self-care.
Sometimes trying to implement change (even for the better) can itself cause stress and prevent a person remaining motivated. In this case it’s important to get support for your stress from a counsellor, doctor, naturopath, friend, peer or life coach who specializes in stress issues.
The benefits of a systematic and joint approach to reducing work stress are:
· Increased productivity
· Decrease in absenteeism
· Improved morale
· Decrease in workers’ compensation claims
· Reduction in workplace accidents
The most important benefit in reducing workplace stress is that it will promote a pleasant work environment for all.
About the Author
Lisa Branigan is a Stress and Energy Life Coach working with busy women who are stressed, tired and overwhelmed. Her passion is to ensure her coaching sessions provide women the necessary support, encouragement and understanding needed to create changes and bring balance to their life and health. Lisa is the publisher of "Life Solutions" a free monthly e-zine providing tips, advice and information on self-care and wellbeing for women.
Visit her website at www.quantumcoaching.com.au
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| Stress Management: Information and Resources on Stress From About.com |
| Find a wide variety of stress management strategies you can use in your daily life. Learn about the causes and effects of stress, healthy and effective ... |
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| Links to stress management information on the web. |
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| Return to the Stress Management and Emotional Wellness Page ... Cognitive Restructuring Approaches to Stress Management ... |
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| International Stress Management Association(UK) |
| The leading professional body for stress management. The ISMA website has articles from their journal Stress News, links and general advice on lifestyle and ... |
| www.isma.org.uk |
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| Stress Management for Patient and Physician |
| Stress management for patient and physician. Stress is the most common cause of ill health, probably underlying as many as 70% of all visits to family ... |
| www.mentalhealth.com |
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| Stress Management: Counseling Services, University at Buffalo |
| The description on stress management. ... Stress Management. Introduction Stress is a part of day to day living. As college students you may experience ... |
| ub-counseling.buffalo.edu |
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| Stress Management and Anxiety Relief |
| Welcome to stressmanagement.co.uk - We specialise in managing your stress. |
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| Stress Management for effective ways to manage stress |
| Our stress management services allows you to find the solutions to all types of stress. We also have professional stress management counsellors available 7 ... |
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| Stress Management--UIUC Counseling Center |
| Self-help Brochures. What is Stress? Stress is the "wear and tear" our bodies experience as we adjust to our continually changing environment; ... |
| www.couns.uiuc.edu |
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| The Stress Management Society |
| Congratulations to taking the first step to freedom from the stress trap. This is the place to learn more about stress and its management. |
| www.stress.org.uk |
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| Stress management - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
| Stress management encompasses techniques intended to equip a person with effective ... Definition of stress: Stress management defines stress precisely as a ... |
| en.wikipedia.org |
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| Stress |
| Stress Management. Everyone experiences stress from time to time, so it is perfectly normal ... Fortunately, stress management is largely a learnable skill. ... |
| www.cyberpsych.com |
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| SBC Academic Resource Center | Stress Management |
| With stress management training, you can learn to avoid procrastination and other stress-producing situations. Stress Quiz: How Stressed Are You? ... |
| www.arc.sbc.edu |
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| Mind Tools - How to Master Stress |
| 3. Stress Management Techniques. Raising Stress Levels - Psyching Up · Stress Reduction Techniques · Reducing Short-Term Stress - Mental Techniques ... |
| www.psywww.com |
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| A recent survey showed that 70-90% of us feel stressed at work and outside. Unless we learn to manage stress, we will get sick. |
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| HSE - Stress Management Standards Homepage |
| The International Stress Management Association has produced a leaflet showing how employees can work with their employers to tackle work-related stress ... |
| www.hse.gov.uk |
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| Stress Management Tips for Stressed and Overworked People. |
| Free weekly stress management tips and relaxation CD plus practical resources for stressed people. |
| www.stresstips.com |
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