Under Pressure: stress in the workplace

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For many working individuals, pressure is an accepted and manageable part of their job and for some people pressure is actually a positive thing that helps them to excel and perform.

However, for one group of people, pressure in the workplace can quickly mount up and escalate to feelings of stress.

Stress can be defined as the reaction that people have when unable to cope with excessive pressures and demands. Although stress is not equivalent to ill health it may give rise to psychological symptoms leading to physical and mental ill health, such as anxiety and depression.

The 2005-2006 survey of self-reported work related illness in the UK found that up to five million people felt stressed at work and around 420,000 individuals believed they were suffering from work related stress at a level that was making them ill.

Additionally in the Health and Safety Executive (HSE)'s 1996 Mental Health and Stress in the Workplace: a Guide for Employers report, it is estimated that 180 million working days were lost every year in the UK due to stress related absence. This costs employers nearly four billion pounds.

This white paper considers the legal implications of occupational stress and the obligations on organisations to protect their workers from this phenomenon. Download it now »

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