Guidance on managing pressure at work

Background

1. Developments in higher education, including the increase in the number of students, public funding constraints, increased accountability, i.e. greater external assessment, have led to greater pressure in the sector. This guidance seeks to recognise when pressure becomes stressful.

The importance of managing pressure

2. Excessive or prolonged pressure in the workplace is a health and safety issue; a cost to the organisation and the individual; and can be prevented and alleviated by individuals and their managers.

Responsibility for managing pressure

3. This guidance note aims to help managers and staff as individuals to manage pressure at work. It will form part of the School's safety arrangements that accompany the Health and Safety at Work Statement of Policy, which has commitment from the Director. The Court of Governors of the School is ultimately responsible for the setting of health and safety policy concerning all persons under the control of the School. The duty to implement this policy has been delegated to the Director and day-to-day responsibility is further delegated to Heads of Department as defined in the Safety Policy.

The impact of excessive pressure on individuals

4. Challenging work is usually welcome. A high level of pressure can be motivating. However, if pressures become unmanageable or excessive, this may lead to stress shown as physiological or psychological ill health. People vary in how they react to pressure. What is stimulating for one may be stressful to another. Excessive stress can have an impact on performance, health and relationships.

UK law on excessive pressure

5. Employers have a general duty of care to protect employees health. The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 places a duty on every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of their employees. Under the Management of Health and Safety Regulations 1992, employers are obliged to assess the nature and scale of risks to health in their workplace, and base control measures on that assessment.

6. New guidance Help on work-related stress a short guide, dated September 1998, from the HSE warns employers of their duty to ensure that employees are not made ill by their work and cautions against unreasonable dismissal of such people. The HSE plan to produce a Code of Practice on stress this year.

7. Ill health due to stress caused at work has to be treated in the same way as that brought about by physical risks in the workplace. There is therefore a duty to take reasonable care to ensure that health is not placed at risk through excessive levels of pressure.

8. Stress-related illness caused by sexual or racial harassment may be considered under the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 or the Race Relations Act 1976 respectively. If a stress-related illness leads to a mental impairment that has a substantial or long-term effect on the ability to carry out normal day-to-day duties, it may be covered under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

The business case for managing pressure

9. For the School to be successful, it is important that everyone should be able to work effectively. Good health and low sickness absence contribute to this.

10. Excessive pressure can prevent staff working effectively. It can also mean the individuals work increasingly long hours for diminishing returns; lose motivation; and make mistakes. It can also trigger an increased staff turnover rate.

11. Recent court cases, and the advice given by the Health and Safety Executive, will mean that it is likely that courts will expect employers to assess the nature and scale of risks to health in the workplace, take stress alerts seriously, and take steps to prevent and alleviate pressure.

The cause of harmful pressure

12. The following are examples of what cause excessive pressure at work:

• prolonged conflict with others, harassment or bullying;
• under or over-promotion and overloading or little to do;
• torn loyalties between work and home;
• a high degree of uncertainty about jobs and career prospects;
• uncomfortable working conditions and inflexible/over-demanding work schedules.

13. Research has shown that lower grades of staff are more likely than higher management to suffer stress related ill health. Working women with children have particular problems of pressure because of the need to juggle work, childcare and domestic responsibilities.

14. Significant life events outside work such as bereavement, divorce, ill health and death can cause stress. Although there is no legal duty to prevent stress caused by problems outside work, it is sensible to show understanding.

15. On an everyday basis, work, home life and health are interdependent. It may need to be acknowledged that sometimes it is difficult to assess whether the main cause of stress is work related or due to private circumstances.

Recognition of the symptoms of excessive pressure

16. Recognising excessive stress in ourselves and others outlines some of the behavioural and physical effects of when pressure can lead to negative stress. Most of these are usually short-lived. However, excessive pressure can lead to long term ill health.

Management of pressure at work

17. Research has shown that there are three particular factors that put people under increased risk from stress:

•  lack of control over the job;
•  quantitative or qualitative job overload or underload;
•  lack of support from managers and colleagues.

18. Sometimes a degree of stress in unavoidable. Strategies can be used to respond to work pressures. Steps that managers can take to prevent or reduce excessive pressure can be found in the guidelines for managers.

19. Stress levels can be checked by discussion as part of good line management. Sickness absence and annual leave sheets may also indicate an issue.

20. To minimise pressure, line managers can facilitate team support and model effective stress management themselves.

Avoidance or reduction of excessive pressure by staff

21. Individuals are responsible for taking care of their own physical health and checking that the balance between their work and non-work activities is healthy for them.

22. Good time management can lead to effective workload organisation. Examples include: checking priorities on a daily basis; setting realistic goals; planning work to foresee particularly busy periods; taking steps to reduce conflicting priorities in good time; and delegating where possible and appropriate. Annual leave can be planned carefully to gain the maximum benefit from these breaks from work.

23. Training needs should be assessed to help to do the job more effectively and manage behaviour positively e.g. time management and assertiveness training may be helpful. Short workshops on managing stress are occasionally organised by Human Resources.

24. Talking through the pressures and getting support from others at work, e.g. managers, colleagues, Human Resources Officers, Trade Union representatives and a St Philips Medical Centre Doctor; and outside work, e.g. GP, family and friends, may be helpful.

25. If the workload is judged to be excessive, this should be brought to the attention of the manager, as should any ill health that is stress related.