Stressed workers

Employees suffering from high stress levels have lower engagement, are less productive and have higher absentee levels than those not operating under excessive pressure, according to research from professional services firm Towers Watson.

The firm's Global benefits attitudes survey found that levels of workplace disengagement significantly increase when employees experience high levels of stress. The research shows that of those employees who claimed to be experiencing high stress levels, over half (57%) also reported that they were disengaged. In contrast, only one in 10 (10%) employees claiming low stress levels said they were disengaged and half of this group claimed to be highly engaged.

Conversely, almost half (59%) of low-stressed respondents said they were highly engaged, but only eight per cent of highly stressed workers could say the same.

Its study into health, wellbeing and productivity found that employees describing themselves as highly stressed lost three-quarters more days (4.6 days) to absence on average than low-stressed employees (2.6 days).

They lost a further 50% more time to presenteeism that is, attending work when unwell and unproductive, than their less-stressed peers.

Meanwhile, employees said that inadequate staffing, low pay and unclear job expectations were the three top causes of stress.

www.towerswatson.com/en/Press/2014/09/Workplace-stress-leads-to-less-productive-employees

www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=4990