Have you had the following thoughts or shared these sentiments with friends and family?
- My job is extremely stressful.
- The yelling in the workplace causes me stress.
- Work gives me headaches.
- I don’t think my supervisor has any idea about how demanding s/he can be.
Job or workplace stress is regularly used to describe how one feels at the end of the day. Though many of us do not punch time clocks any more, we may still feel the pressure of more complicated assignments, the challenge of working on teams, or what we consider excessive demands that may keep us at work beyond the typical workday.
Consider the following:
- Occupational stressors and fears are the leading source of stress for American adults [1]
- Person-environment fit in the workplace is what matters when it comes to experiencing and navigating stress in the workplace [1]
- This means how suitable the work responsibilities or the employment setting are for your skills and workplace expectations. Is there a possible mismatch?
- Stress is “a highly personalized phenomenon” [1]
- In other words, a position/task that is stress inducing for one individual may be just right for another
- Main causes of stress include workload (46%); people issues (28%); juggling work/personal lives (20%); and lack of job security (6%) [1]
- According to a joint study by Harvard and Stanford, workplace stressors have a greater impact on women, ethnic minorities, and individuals with less education [2]
- Specifically, non-Hispanic black men with less than 12 years of education were found to be impacted the greatest with life expectancy decreasing ~1.7 years due to workplace stressors. [3]
Recognizing poor mental health among your colleagues and coworkers:
- Increased absenteeism.
- Complaints about headaches.
- Having a short-fuse with team members.
- Statements about not earning enough to make ends meet.
- Change in appearance; perhaps more unkempt.
What makes a positive difference?
The Arredondo Advisory Group suggests the following:
- Effective leadership — supervisors who take note of workplace stressors and external factors and their effects on employees and speak directly with an employee that seems to show signs of stress.
- Supportive policy and procedures; Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) can be helpful and confidential sources of support.
- Management and employee education and training about wellness programs and how to manage workplace stress.
- Communication from workplace leaders that strives to mitigate stigma — that it’s OK to seek help for stress.
- Guidelines in the workplace reminding employees about early “best practice” for self-care.
A few resources to consider:
- American Psychological Association: Workplace Stress
- American Psychological Association: Work Stress
- From Evidence to Practice: Workplace Wellness that Works
References:
- American Institute of Stress (n.d.) Workplace stress. Retrieved from https://www.stress.org/workplace-stress/
- Bloudoff-Indelicato, M. (2016). How stress hits minorities and less educated workers the hardests: Researchers analyze workplace health to find inequities. Insights by Stanford Business. Retrieved from https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/how-work-stress-hits-minorities-less-educated-workers-hardest
- Goh, J., Pfeffer, J., & Zenios, S. (2015). Exposure to harmful workplace practices could account for inequality in life spans across different demographic groups. Health Affairs, 34(10), 1761-1768.