Pressure appears to be endemic in today’s society – and nowhere more so than in the workplace.
Indeed, in many companies, it seems to be almost an ethos. As a result, pressure to meet targets, make money and even push for promotion is simply part of day-to-day life for hundreds of thousands of employees up and down the country.
So it comes as little surprise that recent figures from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development revealed that 42% of UK staff are under ‘excessive pressure’ either every day or at least once or twice a week. While some people would argue that a certain amount of stress can be good for boosting productivity, when it becomes excessive, everyone should sit up and take notice.
Continued heavy strain can lead to a catalogue of health problems ranging from irritable bowel syndrome and ulcers to high blood pressure, insomnia, obesity and even heart attacks. And even if stress does not lead to physical illness, it can almost certainly lead to serious dips in productivity.
A direct correlation between too much pressure and poor health is hardly surprising. What is surprising, however, is how easily the situation can be rectified or, better still, prevented. To this end, HR departments need to understand that the issue cannot simply be swept under the carpet and it is their responsibility to look after the mental and physical health of staff.
This means that it is important to consider whether individuals are stressed, and if so, why and what can be done about it. Many issues can, after all, be alleviated by either changes to the work environment or through staff training.
And on the plus side, dealing with the issue can save the organisation money. On the one hand, during difficult economic times, it is crucial to keep productivity and quality of work levels as high as possible. On the other, it makes financial sense to keep the number of temporary workers required to cover employees on long-term sick leave down to a minimum.
We also undertook some stress-related research, however, and found that a huge 44% of workers were currently losing sleep over the issue. Just under a third of respondents admitted to becoming over-emotional and a worrying 15% were drinking to help them cope.
Within the workplace context, 34% of those questioned cited an increased workload as their greatest single fear.
All about balance
The three sectors that felt most pressured, meanwhile, were construction, where a quarter of workers felt stressed ‘all of the time’, followed by education, (24%) and medicine/caring professionals (23%). The HR function also stood out because 83% of respondents here professed themselves to be consistently stressed ‘sometimes’.
But overall, nearly a quarter of employees felt they lacked of control over their day, while a third were actively frustrated with their working environment. A further 15% also attested that they did not receive enough training to help them do their jobs as well as they would like.
What this would appear to indicate is that, if organisations want their employees to flourish, operate effectively and keep stress levels under control, it may be helpful to introduce individual personal development plans and training to help them carry out their roles more effectively.
The perfect working environment is a balanced one. The most successful people in life are often not necessarily brilliant, but balanced. Having enough time to take a lunch break, tuck the children into bed or even enjoy a nice glass of wine in the evening are all vital ingredients in ensuring optimum productivity.
Getting the balance right will require time and effort, but appropriate training to help define boundaries and establish a good work/life mix can help here too.
When times are tough economically, however, it can be all too easy to cut back on things that can make a big difference to staff. Bonus schemes, rewards, incentives and training may all seem like unnecessary expenditure at first glance, but scrapping them can be counter-productive.
If you believe that your people are an asset and form the backbone of the organisation, you have to invest in and nurture them as you would any other asset.
There is no way to alleviate stress and pressure from your office altogether – in fact, some probably has to exist to fuel a certain sense of urgency. But it’s crucial not to let it spiral out of control in the hope that it will sort itself out over time.
A wise man once said: “You don’t get ulcers from what you eat, but from what’s eating you.” So don’t let stress eat away at your staff – or your profits.
Tony Glass is vice president of sales at elearning courseware provider, SkillSoft.
