Stress is now the single biggest cause of sickness absence in the UK and results in a loss of 13.4m working days and £400m in revenue each year, says a report published by Henderson Global Investors in October. Stress: An Epidemic in the UK’s Workplace? highlights workplace stress as a growing socially responsible investment concern in the UK and draws the attention of investors to the problem of workplace stress as a cause of low productivity. Henderson says the way in which employers promote well being in the workplace is a key factor in the its company evaluation process. Contact Mark Campanale, Henderson 020 7818 4267(http://www.henderson.com)
Stress address
More than three quarters (76%) of UK businesses say they have increased training and support to deal with the problem of stress at work, according to research released by the Institute of Directors on November 2, National Stress Awareness Day. Measures being used to combat stress include:
giving staff more responsibility (72%)
allowing staff to work from home (70%)
introducing more flexible work arrangements (63%)
giving staff more manageable workloads (60%)
Meanwhile, the TUC has estimated that work-related stress costs the economy up to £7bn as many as 6.5m lost working days a year. The Trades Union Congress warned that levels of stress are higher in large organisations, with nearly two-thirds (63%) of workers in businesses with more than 1,000 workers complaining of stress, as compared with around three-fifths (58%) across all companies. Contact Richard Taylor, IoD 020 7451 3264 (http://www.iod.com)
Europe gets tough on stress
Four major European social partner organisations have signed a framework agreement on tackling work-related stress, including the European Trade Union Confederation and the Union of Industrial and Employer’s Confederations in Europe.
The agreement aims to increase understanding between employers and workers on the problems of stress and includes an agreed approach to identifying and dealing with these. The agreement and any future decisions will be implemented
by the partners, rather than through EU legislation. The European Commission will be required to consult the social partners before submitting social policy proposals relating to stress. Contact Reijo Kempinnen, European Commission, on 00 3 295 3358 (http://www.europa.eu.int)
Counting Sleep
Think-tank Demos teamed up with IKEA to commission research into the sleep patterns of Britain’s workers. Dream On: Sleep in the 24/7 Society, published on November 1, finds that people aged 35 to 44 think they are the most sleep deprived in Britain – nearly half (48%) said that they do not get enough sleep, compared to two fifths (39%) of the general population. In this age group, the people who are most likely to suffer from lack of sleep, have young children and are holding down managerial jobs. The report concludes that if bosses are a nightmare, this is most likely because they are short of sleep. When asked about the effects of lack of sleep, half of managers (50%) said they were irritable and shouted and one in five (19%) said they were likely to make mistakes. Contact Eddie Gibb, Demos 020 7367 6317, (http://www.demos.co.uk)
Too much or too little?
Twenty per cent or more of the workforce in the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Japan work at least 50 hours a week, compared with fewer than 10 percent in most European countries, according to a new publication authored by the International Labour Office. Working Time and Workers Preferences in Industrialised Countries: Finding the Balance, published on October 22, argues that there are substantial gaps between the hours that people are actually working and the number of hours that workers need or would prefer to work. Some groups of workers with ‘excessively’ long hours would prefer to work less, and at the same time, there is a sizable group of workers whose hours of work are significantly shorter than they would prefer. Contact ILO 00 41 22 799 7912 (http://www.ilo.org)
Treading on eggshells
The Health and Safety Executive on November 3 launched a new approach to help employers work with their employees to manage the risks from work-related stress. Management Standards for Work Related Stress provides advice for employers to follow using an approach based on a continuous improvement model. It features a benchmarking tool to help managers gauge stress levels, compare themselves with other organisations and work with employees to identify solutions. Contact Andy Fisher, HSE 020 7717 6902 (http://www.hse.gov.uk)
Fatherly advice
Lloyds TSB funded the production of Daddy’s home: a life planner for fathers, which argues that companies need to change their attitudes towards men wanting to work flexibly, particularly following the new measures under the Employment Act 2002, which came into force in April this year. The guide, written by Working Families, a charity that campaigns on work-life balance issues for families, aims to show men how flexible working can help them spend more time with their families. Contact Maggy Meade-King, Working Families (020 8341 0708) http://www.workingfamilies.org.uk
Healthy employees
United Biscuits has launched an employee health drive that aims to cut sickness absences. The company is giving pedometers to each of its 12,000 staff in Europe and has challenged them to walk 10,000 steps a day. The company already offers a free three-yearly health audit to all employees. Contact United Biscuits 020 8234 5000 (http://www.unitedbiscuits.co.uk)
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