Stress in the Workplace
Unlike other health hazards in the workplace, stress may not be easy to detect. Managers may see it as a potential problem but have so many other responsibilities they 'push it under the carpet'. This could be a major stressor for them!
Likewise staff may worry that they cant fix the problem or that it is a failure to cope on their part.
Either could lead to a breakdown in the communications vital to the support and maintenance of good teamwork, potentially setting your business up for accidents and injuries, workers compensation claims, complaints from customers and costs attributed to high staff turnover.
Be aware of these signs:
* An increase in overall sickness absence – especially frequent short absences
* Poor work performance – less output, lower quality of work, poor decision making, poor timekeeping, increased occurrence of accidents
* Relationships at work – poor relationships with colleagues and clients, bullying, harassment, conflict
* Employee attitude and behaviour – poor timekeeping, loss of motivation or commitment, working long hours but with decreasing effectiveness
While each individual’s response to stressors is unique, some common symptoms are obvious
Behavioural – withdrawal, hostility, eating disorders, increasing use of coffee, alcohol, drugs or tobacco, poor concentration, poor judgement, loss of creativity, making more mistakes, being too busy to relax, absenteeism;
Emotional – loss of confidence, lack of self esteem, anxiety, frustration, anger, apathy, worry or anxiety, depression;
Physical – difficulties in sleeping, frequent and unspecified aches and pains, digestive problems, exhaustion, nausea, lowered resistance to minor illnesses.
Displaying some of these symptoms does not automatically indicate that a person is experiencing stress, but they do point to such a possibility.
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