Understanding Stress At The Workplace
The demands of the workplace can exert varying levels of pressure on the human body and mind. When this pressure exceeds certain thresholds, it can lead to work-related stress. The condition can manifest in a myriad of ways, from psychological symptoms to physical illness.
Stress is the human body’s natural response to any kind of perceived danger or threat to our safety. When faced with such a situation, the body secretes chemicals that increase our blood pressure, heart rate and alertness. This helps prepare our body to either put up a fight or escape to safety (‘fight or flight’).
In short bursts, stress can save our lives. It can help us jump out of the way of a speeding vehicle, or fight back against physical assault. However, when things start causing stress for extended periods, like excessive demands from the workplace, it can affect our physical, emotional, and mental health.
The toll taken by workplace stress
Workplace stress can have a wide range of effects on individuals, including both physical and mental effects. Here are various ways in which workplace stress can impact us:
Physical health effects
The constant secretion of chemicals like cortisol and epinephrine can take a toll on the major organ systems in the body. High blood pressure, increased risk of heart attacks, digestive problems like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), muscle issues, chronic pain and migraine are common physical effects of long-term stress. It can also suppress the immune system, making us more vulnerable to infections.
Mental health effects
Anxiety, depression, exhaustion, lack of concentration, impaired decision-making abilities, and sleep disorders like insomnia are the mental health effects related to workplace stress. Prolonged exposure to stress can cause burnout in employees.
Behavioural effects
In their attempts to cope with stress, people often develop various behavioural changes that can be equally harmful. Overeating, substance abuse, and isolation from colleagues and personal relationships can be seen in individuals affected by workplace stress.
The cumulative effect of all these can be disastrous for both the employees and the organisation. Stress at the workplace can lead to decreased productivity, high levels of employee attrition, and an increase in workplace conflicts.
The 3 Types Of Stress At Work
Based on the duration of exposure to pressure and other contributing factors, stress at the workplace can be divided into three main types:
Acute stress
This is the most common type of stress you can encounter in the office, or at home. It is usually triggered by short-term events like a tight deadline, an important presentation, or trouble from a particularly difficult client. Although it can cause considerable distress, acute stress will eventually go away once you solve or remove the trigger.
Episodic acute stress
When an employee encounters frequent episodes of acute stress in the workplace, it is called episodic acute stress. This can occur when an individual takes on more responsibilities than they can handle, or have other stressors outside work, like marital troubles. It is usually restricted to certain employees in the workplace.
Chronic stress
This is a severe, more pervasive, and highly dangerous type of workplace stress. It is usually caused by stressors that persist in a workplace for months or even years. Examples include toxic workplace culture, unrealistic demands from the management, lack of adequate support, and poor work-life balance. Out of the three, chronic stress is the most likely to cause severe physical and mental harm to employees.
External Factors Responsible For Workplace Stress
Internal factors like personality traits, cognitive abilities, and coping mechanisms of individuals can play an active role in deciding how vulnerable a person is to getting overwhelmed by stress. However, elements in the work environment are usually the main culprits when many of your employees suffer from stress. We can broadly identify the following external factors:
Organisational culture
Several surveys indicate that toxic workplace culture is a major issue in India. Unsupportive management, tolerance of abusive behaviour in the workplace, lack of adequate communication, discrimination, and lack of proper recognition are all factors that can cause chronic stress in employees.
Lack of work-life balance
When overtime becomes the norm and employees are forced to work long hours continuously, burnout is inevitable. As work starts to encroach upon time that should be spent with your family, it can compound matters further by causing further mental anguish and stress. According to Indeed surveys, close to 60 percent of Indian employees consider work-life balance as a top priority when looking for a job.
Lack of job security
Lay-offs and corporate reorganisations can contribute to workplace stress. Fear of job loss and concerns about job stability can wreck workplace morale if you fail to address them in time with transparency and honesty. This often happens in organisations that are struggling to remain profitable.
Office environment
Even the physical environment in the workplace can contribute to stress. High levels of heat or cold, noise, inadequate or overly bright lighting, pollution, and uncomfortable working conditions can all function as contributing factors that can exacerbate stress in the workplace.
3 Things Employers Can Do To Combat Workplace Stress
While pressure at work is inevitable, there are many things employers can do to ensure that employees are not overwhelmed by it at the workplace. As you have already seen, numerous factors can contribute to work-related stress, and many of them can be controlled with some foresight and planning.
Provide flexible work options
With the support of over 88 percent of jobseekers in India, remote/hybrid work is here for the long haul. Employees like remote and hybrid working arrangements in India because it can improve work-life balance in a huge way. The hours you would have wasted on long daily commutes can be repurposed to spending quality time with the family.
While 100% remote work is only practical in certain niche roles, you can still provide more flexible work arrangements to improve the work-life balance of your employees. Even the option to telecommute for a few days per week can make a world of difference.
Increase psychological safety
Factors like abusive behaviour, harassment, and excessive managerial oversight can make employees feel unsafe at the workplace. Toxic workplace culture combined with a lack of diversity and inclusion is a common feature of workspaces that are psychologically ‘unsafe.’
Unfortunately, there are no quick fix solutions for this problem – a thorough review of your company culture and DEIB+ initiatives would be a good starting point. Often, a major overhaul of workplace rules and norms is necessary to combat ingrained toxic behaviours.
Engage with employees
A feeling of lack of control or autonomy can cause frustration and stress in highly creative and talented individuals. Meanwhile, others are more productive when placed in a more rigid hierarchy. You can reduce work-related stress by ensuring that your employees are a right fit for their current roles.
Whenever possible, encourage managers to interact closely with all their direct subordinates to learn more about their goals, passions and issues they have with their current roles. This information can be used to improve internal mobility/internal recruiting and put employees in roles where they can thrive.
Key Takeaways
Workplace stress is a complex phenomenon with many potential contributing factors. While you cannot resolve them all, even addressing a few factors can drastically improve the long-term health prospects of your employees. Better work-life balance, freedom for fear of abuse or discrimination and greater engagement with management can address the most common causes of stress at work.
