According to stress statistics reported by East Midlands Business Link, one in every eight company employees has felt the need to take time off work due to excessive workplace stress in the last year.
Dolan Contractor Group contacted 140 UK employers and drew its findings as to what workers deemed to be ‘Excessive workplace stress’, as well as how staff reacted to stress in order to maintain good mental health, and how employers supported them.
The top three most common stress factors, based on the percentage of people surveyed:
- Long working hours – 41%
- Deadline/Client pressure: 32%
- Inability to build savings: 29%
Differences were also found between how stress is handled between genders and those employed by either Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs), or large organisations. Reportedly there are key differences between support and benefits for permanent staff compared to contractors and freelancers.
interestingly, those willing to seek help from a manager regarding feeling stressed differed wildly between large and small companies, with 30% of bigger firm workers reporting that they would get advice, compared to just 12% of SME staff.
Large Company employees’ biggest issue by percentage of staff:
Small Company employees’ biggest issue by percentage of staff:
Director of Wellbeing at Westfield Health, Richard Holmes, commented:
“Burnout is a state of emotional, physical and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. Pressure at work is usually the main culprit and when budgets are tight and teams are small, people often find themselves with multiple roles and heavy workloads, piling on the stress.”
Tackling stress before it becomes harmful
The first step is to acknowledge that things are getting out of hand. You may notice that you are beginning to fret about work at lunchtime, on the commute to and from work, in your spare time or even during the night. If this is becoming the case, speak to your line manager or failing that – your HR representative.
Make time to share your issues with loved ones and colleagues, allow yourself adequate downtime and hobbies, and stop checking your email inbox 24/7.
Further reading
Check our exhaustive yet easy-to-digest guide to stress in the workplace, written by our Psychiatric Injury team.
Charities/Useful Websites
Mind
Northpoint
Samaritans
The Calm Zone
WHAT TO DO NEXT
If internal channels within your workplace have failed, it may be time to know what your legal rights are regarding any matter relating to stress, whether it be excessive workload, out-of-hours contact or even bullying. Get in touch today for a free initial consultation. Choose one of the methods on the right-hand side of this page, or call us on 0113 200 9787 to find out how an attorney can help you.
Article by Stuart Jones
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