Stress tips

Pressure is part and parcel of all work and helps to keep us motivated. But excessive pressure can lead to stress, which undermines performance, is costly to employers and can make people ill.

Work-related stress accounts for over a third of all new incidences of ill health.

Over 12 million working days were lost to stress, depression and anxiety in last year. Tackling stress can have a positive effect on: employee commitment to work, staff performance and productivity, staff turnover or intention to leave, staff recruitment and retention, customer satisfaction and organizational image and reputation.

When someone is experiencing stress and stress-related illness you will need to consider who else it would be appropriate to involve. For example, if the issue is pressure at work, it may be enough to involve just the individual and their line manager

It is important to take action at a personal level and to review your lifestyle to see if you can identify any contributing factors. A simple checklist might include: eating on the run, or in a disorganized manner, smoking, or drinking excessively, rushing, hurrying, being available to everyone, doing several jobs at once, missing breaks, taking work home with you, having no time for exercise and relaxation.