4 Ways to Reduce Your Employee’s Stress Levels
A quarter of workers in the UK are experiencing extreme levels of stress at work that they are unable to cope with. This can be brought on by a range of factors including job dissatisfaction, a high pressure working environment, poor relationships with colleagues, and excessive workload. Stress can be hugely harmful to a person’s health, potentially leading to anxiety, depression, and burnout. It can increase the risk of all kinds of medical issues like high blood pressure, stroke, and heart attack. And it’s also bad for business. Stressed employees are likely to be less productive than their happier counterparts, and are more likely to quit their job, leaving you hunting for a new employee to fill the gap.
In order to benefit both your employees and your organisation, it’s essential you take steps to reduce stress levels in your office and make good mental health a priority. Here are four ways to create a stress-free workplace.
Talk to your staff
As a manager, you may not even be aware there is a problem. People often don’t like to talk about their mental health issues for fear of seeming weak or burdening others with their problems. You need to be proactive in seeking out the issue and dealing with it. Ask your staff how they are coping with their workloads and if there is anything you can do to make their job easier. Show them that you care and that you are approachable, and they will be more likely to share their concerns with you. It is only when you know about the stress problem that you can take steps to mitigate it.
Redistribute workloads
If people have too much on their plate, it may just need a redistribution of workloads. Sharing the burden equally between your team may reduce the pressure and make life easier for everyone. It may be a case of hiring a new employee to take up the slack, even if just on a part-time basis. You need to make sure people aren’t overwhelmed by the amount of work they have to do.
Offer flexible working
Commuting to and from the office costs people a lot of time and money, and can also be very stressful. Allowing your employees to work from home at least some of the time will help to relieve their stress and make their lives easier. As long as they can work from their home computer, they will be happier, healthier, and potentially more productive.
Provide mental health support
There are many mental health services all over the country that are designed to help people with their stress levels and emotional wellbeing, such as EAP counselling. Provide resources to make your staff aware of these options and that they should prioritize their own mental health above their careers. At the very least you can be strict about staff taking plenty of breaks and getting out of the office in their lunch hours.
By following these tips you will be able to cultivate a happy, healthy, and stress-free workforce.