Sue Montague

Common Causes of Stress in the Workplace



Posted: Monday, September 04, 2006

by Sue Montague
http://www.diet4u.com.au

According to a report commissioned by International Stress Management Ass (UK) in association with AXA, latest research shows that 64% of the UK workforce were suffering from workplace stress in 2002 which was up from 53% the previous year, these may be UK figures but the same results are occurring throughout the western world.

There are many common causes of stress in the workplace and many go unnoticed during our day to day busy lives. Stress is now a significant factor in the workplace with stress-related workers compensation claims steadily increasing.

Are you one of the 64%? Do you recognize that you are suffering from stress in your workplace? This article will show you how to recognize if you are. Generally most people manage to cope with stressful situations and pressures associated with their job but the responses to these pressures vary according to their personality, experience and the other demands they are dealing with in their life. They often find themselves with poor concentration, irritability, mood swings, extreme levels of frustration or experience physical symptoms like exhaustion before they realise that they need to take a step back and make some changes. Can you identify with some of these stresses and perhaps there are areas that you can change to help reduce your stress.

Work Overload: Do you just have too much to do, too much responsibility. Are there too many meetings, long working hours, too much time traveling, pressures and deadlines to meet?.

Threat of Job loss: Are you uncertain about your future. In today’s world companies are constantly wanting bigger profits and expecting to achieve that with less staff. Many people are faced with taking redundancy packages. To make matters worse, when the staff numbers are reduced you are still expected to produce the same amount of work and in a lot of cases you are working harder with no pay increase!

An Unsympathetic Boss: Are your suggestions and complaints heard, does your boss listen to you?

Sexual Harassment: Do you find you are not being treated as an equal because of your sex. Are there comments made about your gender that make you feel uncomfortable or threatened?

Taking Work Home: Do the demands of your work mean that you are forced to take your work home with you? Are you putting a strain on the relationship with your family, they may begin to think that your work is more important than they are. 28% of workers in the UK study said that their workload was affecting their relationships at home with family and friends.

Office Politics: Show me an office where there aren’t any politics!

Did warning bells go off as you read through this artticle? So…..what do you do next?

Many companies now have Staff Support Programs as an initiative, usually through their HR department. The benefits of these programs have proved invaluable where there are high levels of occupational stress due to the demands of the job. The emphasis of these programs is to educate and promote stress prevention (prevention being the key word) assisting staff in coping with the pressure of stress in a non-judgmental way which brings empowerment to the individual. Seek out help, ask questions and find out where you can access help in your situation. Don’t suffer in silence and keep it all inside, find out who you can talk to.

Sue Montague has had over 25 years of experience working in her own business and working in large corporations. She now operates a successful international marketing business from her own home, working her own hours and being her own boss. If you would like to find out more about what she is doing go to http://www.workingfromhome.com.au

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