Three out of five workers in the UK complain that they are stressed at work, according to a new survey.

The survey, released by the Trade Union Congress (TUC), shows that factors such as increased workloads, changes at work, staff cuts and long working hours are just some of the reasons why today’s work force is feeling the strain.

However, small business employees can take some comfort in the knowledge that the bigger the firm, the bigger the risk of stress.

Overall, 58 per cent of workers complained about stress, however the figure rose to 63 per cent in businesses with 1,000 employees or over.

Stress at work costs the economy £7 billion each year through sick pay, lost production and medical costs and accounts for 6.5 million lost working days.

The survey, of 4,521 safety representatives, suggests that little is being done to address the issue.

Brendan Barber, TUC general secretary, said: “The fact that people are more stressed than ever before is bad news for workers and bad news for business.

“Things like failure to replace staff are bad for workers, their families and the employer’s productivity. Unless bosses start to seriously tackle stress and the causes of stress, they will continue to lose many days to workers off sick and many hours of productivity from their demoralised workforce.”

However, the Institute of Directors (IoD) are set to release a survey which shows that employers have more of a handle on the problem.

It shows that many UK businesses have a strategy put in place such as increased training and support, flexible working and staff appraisals.

Richard Wilson, head of business policy at the IoD, said: “Stress is partly caused by working lengthy hours, particularly among managerial staff. The stress of actually getting into work, for example, is also a common cause, due to our dilapidated public transport system.

“We have a more positive outlook than the TUC. We believe our members are helping their employees to conduct their work and home life more easily.

“At the same time it can be even more stressful when out of employment. We have to make sure that the right balance is struck.”