Employers have a legal duty to protect employees from stress at work by doing a risk assessment and acting on it, but how do you make sure it’s done at an organisational level?
Reaching out and having conversations is the first step to preventing work-related stress becoming a problem. You can have these conversations individually or in groups or teams, the key thing is to recognise any common stressors or issues being raised by workers.
We know the main causes of work-related stress, depression or anxiety are workload pressures, including tight deadlines, too much responsibility and a lack of managerial support. Considering how the team works together could be the key to resolving these collective issues. Taking an organisational approach that tackles the root cause of problems can help the whole team rather than just an individual, and you may be able to take one action that helps a number of people.
Here’s an example – if you have a typically busy time of the year, it's likely that this is when employees may start to feel stressed. In anticipation of that time, you could introduce more regular team catch ups to check in on how people are coping, whether the workload is manageable and if it could be shared differently across the team. You could also consider a change of policy, or focus on management style, and how these are communicated to employees.
If you have fewer than five employees you don’t have to write anything down. But it is useful to do this, so you can review it later, for example if something changes.
If you have five or more employees, you are required by law to write the risk assessment down. It doesn’t need to be a big exercise – just note the main points about the significant risks and what you decided.
If you think that a worker is having problems, encourage them to talk to someone, whether it’s their line manager, trade union representative, GP or their occupational health team if available.
You might find the Acas framework for positive mental health at work useful to see the different roles of employers, managers and individuals in promoting mental health at work.
You can also:
Are you an employer with staff in Wales?
Take part in The Healthy Working Wales 2023 Employer Survey to let Public Health Wales know how they can help by sharing your workplace health and wellbeing concerns.
It should take about 10 minutes to complete, and is open until midnight on Sunday 5 March.
Our campaign partner Mates in Mind has launched a free and confidential text service to reach individuals who may be struggling with their mental health.
The Be A Mate text service is aimed at those who work in construction, transport or related industries.
Simply text “BeAMate” to 85258 and trained volunteers can help with issues including anxiety, stress, loneliness or depression and are available 24/7 (please don’t WhatsApp).
The latest research shows a rising number of UK farmers say poor mental health is one of the biggest hidden problems faced by farmers today.
Download the free guide The Little Book of Minding Your Head from the Farm Safety Foundation (aka 'Yellow Wellies') for those who may be struggling with the pressures of farming or recognise that struggle in someone else.
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