Transcript Organisational stress management
Being Proactive: An Organisational Approach to Managing Workplace Stress
I/O Net Presentation by Dr Hillary Bennett Director, PsychAssessments
Healthy Work: Managing Stress in the Workplace. (2003)
“ Creating a healthy and safe workplace requires employers and employees to work systematically together to identify hazards and manage them”
Stress an integral and inevitable feature of most contemporary workplaces
Workplace stress arises when individuals perceive an imbalance between the pressures and demands made on them and the resources they have to cope with these demands
Managing Stress in the Workplace
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Traditional view
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Stress the responsibility of the individual
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Organisational view
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Employers and employees have a responsibility to address work-related stress
The HSE Amendment Act 2002
Objective: To promote the prevention of harm to all persons at work through the systematic management of hazards
HSE Amendment Act 2002 holds Employers Responsible for
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Implementation of effective systems for identifying existing and new hazards, including work-related stress
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Systematic management of hazards, by eliminating minimising preference.
them, them, isolating in that them order or of
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Provision of opportunities for employee participation.
3 Approaches to Tackling Work related Stress
Prevention
Identifying and acting on the causes of stress
Stress Risk Assessments
Management
Giving staff the skills to cope / manage
Treatment
Professional medical and psychological support
Stress Risk Assessment -
A Preventive Approach SRA aims to identify: 1. The level stress (the harm) 2. The main sources of work-related stress (the hazards) 3. What practicable steps can be taken to eliminate the sources of stress (hazards), if possible
An International Perspective
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An international review of stress prevention in the workplace highlights that there has been a lack of systematic Stress Risk Assessment (Kompier and Cooper, 1999).
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The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Guidance recommends that a risk assessment approach be followed when tackling work-related stress
Steps to Risk Assessment
Step 4 & 5 - Record and Re-Assess Step 1: Identify Hazards What might cause harm?
Step 2: Evaluate Harm Who could be harmed, and how?
Step 3 (a): Evaluate Risks How likely is it that the hazard could cause harm?
Step 3 (b): Introduce controls What can we do to reduce the risk that hazards will cause harm?
Comparison of a Risk Assessment With a Stress Risk Assessment Risk Assessment 1. Identify the Hazards 2. Evaluate the Harm 3. Evaluate the Risk 4. Introduce Controls Stress Risk Assessment 1. Assess levels of stress (harm) 2. Identify main sources of stress 3. Identify the main sources of stress for individuals / teams 4. Identify what can be done to manage the main sources of stress
Stress Risk Assessment Process 1. Planning and Consultation 2. Data Collection Qualitative methods e.g. interviews, focus groups, Stress Diaries Quantitative methods surveys, StressTools e.g.
structured 3. Data Analysis 4. Feedback and Action Planning
StressTools
A Tool for Tackling Work-related Stress
StressTools aims to help organisations identify and manage work-related stressors.
StressTools takes a preventive approach emphasising removing work-related stressors rather than treating stress symptoms
StressTools developed by the Keil Centre with the assistance of Birbeck College and local industry
StressTools won the European Health and Safety Best Practice Award.
StressTools
3 Work Stress Risk Assessments(SRA)
Task-based SRA
Team-based SRA
Future-focused SRA
Task-based SRA
Identify and control stressors and other human factors hazards arising from an unusual, complex or hazardous task
To be included in pre-existing Risk Assessment process
Emphasises links between stress and safety
Tackles stigma associated with mentioning stress
Future-focused SRA
Involve cross-section of employees identifying work-related stressors likely to be associated with a future project or organisational change and planning preventative measures
Focuses on preventing future work-related stress
Relevant to major projects or organisational changes
Identifies relevant work-related stressors through employee involvement
Can be tailored to local circumstances
Identifies actions to prevent / manage future sources of work related stress
Team-based SRA
The team-based SRA method, which identifies levels and sources of stress in teams doing similar work in organisations and identifies locally relevant solutions through employee involvement is particularly relevant in light of the changes to the Health and Safety in Amendment Act 2002.
Employment
Team based SRA Involves 4 Steps…..
Step 1. Evaluating harm . Measures team members’ perceptions of level of work related stress and benchmark levels of stress with other groups Step 2. Identifying the hazards.
Assesses which work- related stressors are causing stress, using a generic (40 predefined) and locally relevant work related stressors. Identifies the main work related stressors affecting team members now or in the recent past Step 3. Evaluating risks.
Assesses what are the most significant sources of stress for team members and describing these sources in more detail.
Step 4. Introducing controls.
Identifies what can be done by management or team members to prevent and manage work-related stress
Conducting a Team-based SRA
Train project organiser / working team
Needs to be well-respected by the team
Important to maintain confidentiality about employees opinions about stressors and levels of stress
Prepare for the team-based SRA
Use cross-section of employees to identify local work related stressors
Customise the team-based SRA
Identify sub-groups
Choose comparison group for benchmarking purposes Add local work-related stressors Add additional questions. Questions need a yes no answer format
Collect data
Paper workbook / on-screen option
Results of Team-based SRA
Stress levels
Stress comparisons with benchmark group
Stress exposure - % of people in each group which indicated that each stressor was “often” of “always” a source of stress
Stressors high- low
Ranked stressors – significance of stressors
Movement
Written comments on main sources of stress
StressTools
14 Management Standards Providing Guidance on How to Prevent Work-related Stressors
Workload Job Insecurity Teamworking Performance feedback
Training & development
Hours of work
Job design Management support Tools and equipment Communication Role ambiguity Skill under-utilisation Work-life balance Effort-reward imbalance
Each Management Standard Includes…
A definition of the stressor How the stressor can cause individual harm and organisational harm How to identify if problem exists now or may do so in the future Management practices that may prevent or resolve these problems
A table which includes:
“States” which describe a well-managed organisation, in relation to this stressor
A space to record current organisational practice, enabling a gap analysis to be done
Examples of the types of best practice which exemplify the “state”
A space to record next steps/actions
International Research Shows
1. Most of the activity in the field of stress management has focused on reducing the effects of stress rather than on reducing the presence of stressors at work.
2. Most activities are primarilyy aimed at the individual rather than the organisation.
3. Concluded that successful management of stress requires intervention at both an individual and organisational level.
Benefits of Stress Risk Assessment
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Signals to employees that the employer is being proactive and serious about managing stress in the workplace.
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It ensures that subsequent stress-related activities aimed at management or treatment are targeted at specific problems and specific individuals.
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Provides a tailored approach to managing stress rather than a “pray and spray” approach.
In the long term it is more effective in terms of costs and time.
In Conclusion
Compared to other stress management techniques The risk assessment approach to stress is likely to more effective, as the source is being addressed rather than the symptoms It is a proactive