Minimize Your Workplace Stress
February 2009
Stress can take an enormous toll on your health, well-being, and relationships. During these troubled financial times people report experiencing even more stress than usual. Finding ways to minimize stress at home and work can help the employee and employer. A less stressed employee is a more productive and healthy employee.
Signs/symptoms of stress can include: headache, sleep disturbances, difficulty concentrating, short temper, upset stomach, job dissatisfaction, and low morale.1
Workplace stress can contribute to injuries, cardiovascular disease, suicide, substance abuse, anxiety, and depression.1,2
Workplace Stress by the Numbers:
- Stressed employees have 46 percent higher health care costs than non-stressed employees.2
- Total stress-related medical claims are approximately $150 billion annually.2
What Employers Can Do:
- Provide stress management training and tools in the workplace through seminars or through your company's intraweb.
- Advertise employee assistance program (EAP) as a source of strategies for stress relief.1
- Train managers to identify avoidable sources of work stress (e.g., excessive workload, conflicting expectations) and design intervention strategies.1
Additional Resources:
NIOSH Safety and Health Topic: Stress at Work
American Psychological Association: Psychologically Healthy Workplace Program
References
- National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Stress...At Work. Cincinnati, OH: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health; 1999. DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 99-101. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/stresswk.html.
- Billings DW, Cook RF, Hendrickson A, Dove DC. A web-based approach to managing stress and mood disorders in the workforce. J Occup Environ Med. 2008 Aug;50(8):960-8.
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