Improving employee stress – is there a benefit for your business?
April is Stress Awareness Month – which is a great opportunity for you to consider how stress may be affecting your employees and business.
As a business owner, you may feel that employee stress is largely out of your
control and that there isn’t a business benefit for you to improve it.
However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Stress is a BIG problem for business owners.
It’s the second cause of absence in the UK, following general sickness like colds, etc. It affects everything from employee engagement, productivity, and culture.
It directly impacts your turnover and profits.
Therefore, actively working on managing employee stress will help you:
- Reduce Absence (one of your largest hidden HR costs): Tackling stress upfront reduces absenteeism, ensuring a consistent workforce and smooth operations.
- Save costs: Addressing stress not only improves well-being but also makes financial sense, reducing healthcare costs, turnover expenses and operating with an efficient workforce.
- Improve creativity and innovation: Stress relief nurtures a positive atmosphere, fuelling creativity and innovation.
- Enhance customer relations: Happy, stress-free employees deliver exceptional customer service, boosting satisfaction and retention.
But how do you manage employee stress in your business?
This is something that we can help you with and it involves looking at all aspects of the business.
Here are some examples of what we can support you with:
- Promote work-life balance such as offering flexible work arrangements.
- Provide resources for stress management such as workshops, seminars on stress management techniques such as mindfulness and deep breathing exercises.
- Establish clear expectations, ensuring employees have a clear understanding of their performance expectations.
- Encourage open communication so employees feel comfortable expressing themselves and seeking support when needed.
- Offer employee assistance programs so employees have access to counselling services and mental health resources.
- Recognise and reward achievement to show appreciation.
- Promote a healthy work environment ensuring the work environment is physically and psychologically safe.
- Encourage breaks and time off to enable employees to rest and recharge. Discourage a culture of presenteeism.
- Provide opportunities for growth and development to empower employees and alleviate feelings of stagnation.
- Lead by example by demonstrating healthy behaviours and coping mechanisms for managing stress.
- Promote social support by encourage team building activities and social events.
- Regularly assess and address stressors by conducting surveys or one to one discussions to identify sources of stress in the workplace.
In conclusion, Stress Awareness Month in April provides a perfect opportunity for business owners to recognise and address the impact of stress on their employees and ultimately, their bottom line. By proactively tackling stress and taking some of the steps above, businesses can reduce absenteeism, save costs and promote a positive work environment. Addressing stress is not only a matter of employee well-being but also a strategic business decision.
If you’d like to have a confidential chat about how we can help, please get in touch.