Stress Management

Reducing and Managing Workplace Stress

With the holiday season in full swing, stress levels are beginning to peak – at work and at home. In a recent survey more than 50% of workers reported working under a great deal of stress on a regular basis and 77% of the respondents said they feel burnt out. On top of that, an American Psychological Association survey found the holidays increase stress for women by 44% and by 31% for men. Some stress is unavoidable and a normal part of life, but prolonged stress levels or spikes in stress can lead to bigger problems like impaired physical and emotional health. With such a dramatic increase in stress levels this time of year, it's a great time to start helping employees cope with stress.

Why should employers be concerned about workers' stress?
The stress level of today's workforce is alarming considering that the U.S. Bureau of Labor estimates companies lose $300 billion annually due to absenteeism, turnover, health care costs, and other stress-related problems. When employees arrive to work depressed, fatigued, or in poor mental or physical health, it can cost businesses an additional $180 billion annually in lower productivity, according to a national study by AdvancePCS, a provider of health improvement services. Excessive amounts of stress can interfere with a person's creativity and interest in work – which leads to lower quality of work and more frequent mistakes. Stress reduction doesn't just benefit the bottom line for businesses. It improves an employee's health, creativity, and productivity.

Identifying Workplace Stressors
Not every work environment is identical, so before you can reduce and manage workplace stress, you must identify which stressors arise in your workplace. Most stress originates from loss of control and creates a feeling of being overwhelmed. A straightforward method is to conduct employee surveys and exit interviews to evaluate stressors and their levels of consequence. Another idea to determine stressors is just to ask people what factors contribute to their stress at work. Whatever method you use, have employees specify what affects their stress levels the most.

Helping Employees Manage Stress at Work
When you've finished researching what stresses your workforce and have determined the top causes of stress, you can take preventative measures to help employees cope. Here are a few tips to help workers regain control when dealing with workplace stress.

• Offer Job Training – Providing better job training may seem like a simple solution that only benefits the company, but when employees are better equipped to do their jobs and work efficiently, their work-related stress will decrease.

• Facilitate Teamwork – Encourage employees to work as teams and develop relationships with each other. When your workforce has a strong ability to work as a team, they will be more likely to help each other out in times of stress.

• Encourage Relaxation – Encourage employees to disconnect when away from work. Allowing them time to take care of personal responsibilities will allow workers to come back to work less worried about things out of the office. One company's successful solution to help employees disconnect has been to implement a stress relief technique. When employees try to send an e-mail during the weekend, they receive an out-of-office type reply stating: “It's the weekend, so it's important to disconnect and allow others to do the same. Please send your e-mail at the beginning of the workweek.”

• Consider Flextime – More businesses are progressively supporting flextime schedules, telecommuting, or alternative workweeks. This is an effective stress reliever for employees struggling to juggle family life with work or even those who have passions they'd like to pursue out of the office.

• Develop an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – EAPs provide an assortment of assistance to employees with personal problems – such as legal or elder care issues. A 2006 Society of Human Resource Management Survey report found that 71% of businesses offered EAPs to help employees with counseling and problem solving after issues were identified.

• Offer Stress Management Programs – Many companies are implementing wellness programs for their employees' physical health. But businesses are also beginning to incorporate required or voluntary stress management training opportunities for their workers as well by offering weekly hour-long stress management courses whenever employees need them.

• Provide Child Care – Not having adequate child care can be among the top stressors for both single parents and two-income households. Providing on-site child care for employees helps alleviate the stress that comes with finding trustworthy child care.

• Create Relaxation Rooms – Sometimes, an employee just needs a few minutes to gather their thoughts, take a personal phone call, meditate, or pray. A converted office or closet can provide a quick escape for anyone needing a minute to relax and destress.

With high stress levels becoming an acute problem for workers as well as businesses, it’s important to realize that employers who help alleviate their employees’ stress benefit in the long run too. As the holidays approach and stress levels start to spike, try using these tips to help ensure your entire workforce has a healthy, happy holiday season.

Comments

[David hogard]

Most of us readily acknowledge that stress is an inescapable part of life in our modern society. It's in the home, the schools, and the workplace. Workplace stress management is becoming a buzz word of sorts, as more companies seek ways to cope with workplace stress.

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