The Health and Safety Executive has launched ‘Talking Toolkit’, an online resource which gives advice to employers on how to reduce work-related stress
According to the latest ‘Work-related stress depression or anxiety
statistics in Great Britain, 2018′ there are 595,000 people in the UK suffering from work- related stress, depression or anxiety.
And, there are 15.4 million working days lost each year due to people falling ill from too much pressure at work.
In order to help employers deal with this growing epidemic, the HSE‘s Talking Toolkit encourages employers to communicate and to create partnerships in the highest-risk sectors.
While high-risk sectors such as public services, education and health and social care are prevalent with work-related stress, there is now significant evidence to suggest that the problem is creeping into other sectors.
The toolkit provides a step-by-step guide to help managers with initial conversations with their employees.
The guide outlines six templates for six different conversations:
Conversation 1 – Demands
Conversation 2 – Control
Conversation 3 – Support
Conversation 4 – Relationships
Conversation 5 – Role
Conversation 6 – Change
Managers can used the templates in unison to discuss all six areas or can choose to cover one topic at a time depending on the individual situation of their employee.
The guide states that the law requires “all employees to assess the risk of work-related stress and to put steps in place to tackle those risks.”
It also states that the Talking Toolkit should not be used as an employers only measure to prevent stress.
In addition, the HSE has promised to reduce work-related stress through the following initiatives:
- Hosting a 18-monthly summit to raise awareness of the condition
- Using research to better understand how to reach affected sectors
- Using communication and social media to share advice
- Producing a recognised qualification for the HR profession and Health and Safety practitioners to manage standards by the end of 2018
