Auditing Stress at Work Andy Smith

Why we should take stress seriously? Work-related stress accounts for over a third of all new incidences of occupational ill- health. Each case of work-related stress, depression or anxiety leads to an average of 30.2 working days lost. A total of 13.8 million working days were lost to work-related stress, anxiety and depression in 2006/7 (

Stress as a process Stress is a process and one must consider: Exposure to stressful experiences/job characteristics. Perceptions of stress. Psychological resources that allow one to cope with the above. Health outcomes induced by the above. All of the above should be part of the audit.

HSE’s Management Standards: A 6 stage approach to stress risk assessment Secure management and employee commitment. Develop stress policy. Identify hazards (see demonstration) Identify problem areas Evaluate the risk and take action (e.g. focus groups; provide feedback; deal with individual issues). Record your findings; develop action plan. Monitor and review.

Our approach Comply with HSE guidelines. Extend to audit other aspects of the stress process. A stress policy should consider prevention of stress, reduction of stress and mental health problems of those still at work, and policies to aid return to work in those suffering from such conditions. Methods of supporting these approaches have been described today and we are very willing to collaborate with organisations to implement effective strategies. Whatever is done must be evaluated and have a firm evidence base. Further action research is required to build on this initial foundation.