Stress in the workplace

March 29 2021

With daily deadlines, long working hours and job insecurity, it’s no surprise that one of the most common causes of stress can be your job. 

But is there anything that you can do to help lower stress levels?

Feeling stressed at work

Whilst occasional feelings of stress can be beneficial in pushing you through difficult situations such as completing a deadline on time, constant levels of stress can have a dramatically negative impact on both you and others in your workplace with absenteeism and low productivity being just a few of the consequences.

Signs of stress

Recognising feelings of stress within your team and yourself increases the likelihood of preventing serious stress-related illnesses from developing. The main indicators are;

• Increased absenteeism. If you’ve noticed that the employee sat on the desk next to you has been missing a lot of work lately it could be as a result of feeling stressed out.
• A short temper. Whilst having the occasional ‘bad day’ is completely normal, an uncharacteristic temper could indicate that you or your team have become overwhelmed by stressful feelings and are in need of help.
• Drastic weight change. Have you or your colleagues gained or lost a huge amount of weight in a short period of time? If so this could be due to stress levels.
• Extroverts becoming withdrawn. If the office joker has become all ‘doom and gloom’, there may be something going on behind the scenes meaning it could be worth checking up on them.

What should you be doing to help reduce stress levels?

Regardless of your role in the office, you have the ability to help reduce stress levels within yourself or of those around you.

For Managers, your role is to ensure that you have suitable policies in place to manage staff absence and any other occupational health issues which can arise as a result of stress within the workplace. For example, working with an occupational health doctor will help to provide information and support to your employees preventing them from suffering with their stress levels in silence.

Your role as an employee doesn’t mean you won’t make a difference just because you’re ‘not in charge’. 

You have the ability to acknowledge both your emotions and the emotions of those around you and inform your employer if you believe there is a high risk of stress-related illness. 

You can also have discussions with your managers about making reasonable adjustments that may improve your performance at work – maybe you would benefit from starting and finishing work later?

We have more information about support available across our website – and if you need us please do get in touch.