It is with regret that GC Organisational Improvement has now closed. We have made great strides over the past few years to bring Wellbeing and Mental Health to the forefront of business needs and requirements.
02/11/2016
Wednesday 2nd November 2016 marks the 18th National Stress Awareness Day, a campaign highlighting the affects of stress on individuals and organisations.
But what is stress, why is it important and what can employers do to support their people and in turn performance?
According to the Health and Safety Executive and International Stress Management Association UK (ISMA), stress is the adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand. These can come from different sources such as work or home, but where the combined affect is overwhelming, stress can occur.
And although the Flight or Fight response often associated with stress is not necessarily a bad thing as a one-off reaction, being continually in this state is.
Stress Management has never been more relevant for employers as recent research by the CIPD revealed that the number of people experiencing mental health problems whilst in employment has risen over the last five years – from a quarter to a third.
The latest estimates from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) also show that stress accounts for 35% of all work related ill health cases and 43% of all working days lost due to ill health.
With stress particularly prevalent in public service industries such as education, health and social care, public administration and defence, the study also found workload pressures, tight deadlines and a lack of managerial support as the main factors causing work related stress, depression or anxiety.
So alongside your duty of care to ensure your workforce is safe and healthy, working to reduce the adverse affects of stress can directly support the improved performance of your organisation - ensuring people are happy, engaged and productive.
As Emma Mamo, Head of Workplace Wellbeing at Mind explained in a recent CIPD report, “the twin goals of increasing levels of staff wellbeing and engagement should be a major priority for UK business leaders – you can’t have one without the other.”
Top tips for stress free success
If you want to find out more about stress in the workplace and what you can do to support your workforce, you can also explore these useful links and resources.
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