SOLUTIONS
to workplace stress

Solutions come after identifying the sources of stress but looking for sources or causes of stress is too slow for some workplace leaders! Instead, they immediately arrange for staff training in stress management. At a business luncheon they hear about newspaper headlines, which support their position by claiming, "Worker stress costing economy billions!"

Stress management is valuable and produces results, but it focuses on only half of the solution... on those causes of stress over which the employee has some control. It assumes that all the employee's stress comes from family, personal, financial, health and working stressors, so what employees need are better coping skills.

The missing half of the solution can be found by focusing on the organization itself. Organizational structure, systems, and style of management are sources of stress over which the employees usually have no control. Those companies and organizations where management has included the employees in developing or changing the structure, revising systems and procedures and creating a mutually beneficial style of operating, usually have very little stress.

The search is about discovery, profit and power... not about laying blame.
To look for, find, and describe sources of stress in a company or organization takes time and commitment on the part of senior management. This process of defining aspects of the organization's structure and ways of work which contribute to employee stress will be an exercise that reveals solutions to the problem. Surveys, focus groups and interviews with employees have been used to define what causes stress among employees. Management staff and other employees can contribute ideas about the shape and content of specific questions.

Important action to take before identifying the causes of stress.
People on the "stress solutions" committee including representatives of management, representatives of employees and a consultant if you have engaged one, should discuss the predominant "people and feelings" factor in this approach. How will supervisors react when staff reveal they feel harrassed by the way supervisors check on work deadlines. Or supervisors reveal they fear losing control when staff members temporarily redistribute department job assignments in order to meet family emergencies.

Even systems and procedures involve responsibilities and people relationships. They are more than words in the procedures manual. As systems are put into operation, unless your office is totally mechanized, compliments or criticisms for the people who implement those systems will evolve as a part of the evaluative discussion.

In a few rare workplaces there is an understanding that comments are welcomed among staff about the way things are carried out. They learn how to do this with respect, and the backdrop behind such action is "improved performance" and higher productivity.

However, if these ideas sound invasive and unpalatable, it would be better not to collect the information about causes of stress. The insurance for increased stress would be to collect opinions and then do nothing.

For more information on Stress at Work click on NIOSH.

That click takes you directly to a document called "Stress at Work" which can be downloaded. The following excerpts will preview its contents. Should you want to see other material developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health their address is www.cdc.gov/niosh

NIOSH Approach to Job Stress
On the basis of experience and research, NIOSH favors the view that working conditions play a primary role in causing job stress.

Job Conditions That May Lead to Stress

Stress, Health, and Productivity
Some employers assume that stressful working conditions are a necessary evil – that companies must turn up the pressure on workers and set aside health concerns to remain productive and profitable in today's economy. But research findings challenge this belief. Studies show that stressful working conditions are actually associated with increased absenteeism, tardiness, and intentions by workers to quit their jobs – all of which have a negative effect on the bottom line.

What Can Be Done About Job Stress?
As a general rule, actions to reduce job stress should give top priority to organizational change to improve working conditions. But even the most conscientious efforts to improve working conditions are unlikely to eliminate stress completely for all workers. For this reason, a combination of organizational change and stress management is often the most useful approach for preventing stress at work.

Getting Started
No standardized approach or simple "how to" manuals exist for developing a stress prevention program. Program design and appropriate solutions will be influenced by several factors – the size and complexity of the organization, available resources, and especially the unique types of stress problems faced by the organization.

Steps Toward Prevention

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