The majority of UK employers have experienced an increase in absences due to stress-related illnesses, new research has revealed.
A survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) found that 52 pert cent of businesses suffered from a rise in staff absence due to stress over the past year.
The main cause of stress was identified as large workloads, with 68 per cent of employers citing this as a factor. A further six in ten said that management styles were to blame, while 41 per cent pointed the finger at pressure to meet targets.
It’s estimated that workplace stress costs the UK economy £1.24 billion a year, with millions of days lost due to stressed workers needing time off.
Encouragingly, the CIPD found that many employers were taking steps to tackle the problem, with two-thirds attempting to improve employees’ work-life balance.
Over half said they were introducing stress audits, while 55 per cent are training staff on how to cope with work pressures.
Be Willmott, author of the report, said that a large part of managing stress is about good people management.
“It is about providing employees with well-defined job roles, challenging but realistic targets and the support, training and recognition to help them achieve these targets.
“Although it is worrying to see stress-related absence on the increase, it is encouraging that employers are taking action to address this,” he said.
