The Answer
All employers have a duty to safeguard the health, safety, and welfare of their staff – including their mental health in the workplace. These duties are governed by Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
The Risk/ Threat
High levels of prolonged stress can lead to:
- Headaches
- Disturbed Sleep
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Mood Swings
- Weakened Immune System
- High Blood Pressure
- Heart Conditions
Not only does this impact the health and safety of the sufferers, but it will also impact the business itself with increased absences, loss of production, financial losses, low morale, and risk of ET claims connected with personal injury and capability terminations.
What You Need To Do
With fast-paced and demanding work activities and practices – not to mention domestic family and financial worries, stress is a common and very real health and safety issue.
Encourage staff to talk and be open. Employers should adopt an open and transparent environment under which workers can freely talk to management about mental health issues without fear. They should adopt a Stress at Work Policy, both under their HR and Health & Safety policies.
Provide and maintain absolute confidentiality to encourage cooperation. Take a liberal and lenient approach towards flexible working, allowing for a balanced work/life policy. It’s also worth adopting simple workstation/desk exercises to relieve build-up of muscular tension and relieve work-related stress during office hours.
Ensure staff take regular breaks away from their workstation to allow their muscles, eyes, and brain to refocus. It also allows employees to converse with colleagues, boosting staff morale. Furthermore, employers could also provide Employee Assistance Packages (EAP) to access free counselling services or direct staff to seek advice/guidance elsewhere.
If you require any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact our HR/Legal Advice Line on 01455 852 028.
