For many people, the workplace is a place where they spend a large part of their time. Unfortunately, the workplace can also be a source of stress and wellbeing issues. Dealing with workplace stress as a manager isn't necessarily easy, but it's important to find ways to prevent and manage stress in order to maintain employee wellbeing. Therefore, it is essential that the workplace and individual managers focus on stress management and wellbeing so that employees can thrive both inside and outside the workplace.
In this article, we will explore the concept of workplace stress management, its definition and meaning, as well as provide concrete advice and tools on how to prevent stress and generally manage stress in the workplace.
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What is stress and what causes stress in the workplace?
Stress is a natural reaction to challenging situations in our lives, and it can be both positive and negative, depending on whether it's short-term or long-term stress.
Short-term, acute stress can help us perform at our best in a stressful situation because it puts the body on alert. This type of stress is beneficial to us in certain situations and not dangerous to our health. However, if our stress levels remain high over a long period of time, it can have serious consequences for our health and well-being. With prolonged stress, the body is not allowed to relax and rest. Instead, it's on constant and sustained alert, which is harmful and needs to be taken seriously if it continues for weeks, months or years.
Long-term stress in the workplace is caused by a number of different factors, including:
- Too high demands on performance
- Lack of resources available to get the job done
- Time pressure and lack of free time and rest
- Organization of work
- Lack of support and recognition from colleagues and management
- Poor collaborative relationships in the workplace
- Poor psychological work environment
Other factors such as personal issues, conflict and poor health can also contribute to workplace stress.
It's important to understand that stress not only affects the individual employee, but can also have a negative impact on workplace productivity and performance. So, if you're only looking at the organization's bottom line and performance, it's also essential that your workplace focuses on employee wellbeing, stress prevention and stress management. You can read more about the impact of the work environment on organizational performance in the article Why psychological safety is the path to development, efficiency and bottom-line results.
What are the symptoms of stress?
Examples of physical symptoms of long-term stress:
- Headaches
- Muscle tension especially in the neck and shoulders
- Fast and shallow breathing
- Heart palpitations with irregular rhythm
- Stabbing pain in the heart
- Sleep problems
- Dizziness due to fatigue
Examples of mental symptoms of long-term stress:
- Difficulty concentrating
- Memory impairment
- Irritability
- Bad mood
- Anxiety
- Indecision
You can read more about all the signs of long-term stress at sundhed.dk here. Are you unsure if you have symptoms of stress? Then you can go through a series of questions and check if you have symptoms of stress.
How to prevent stress in the workplace?
Prevention is always better than treatment, this applies to stress and many other lifestyle diseases. According to the Working Environment Act, you as an employer have the overall responsibility for ensuring that the workplace has a safe and healthy working environment, which among other things helps to prevent stress among employees.
Preventing stress in the workplace is achieved through a good physical and psychological work environment and employee wellbeing, as well as good and accommodating management. There are a number of different strategies that can help prevent stress in the workplace - here are some of them:
- Help your employees manage stress: Allow them to take breaks and interrupt their work when necessary. Psykiatrifonden has created a small and concrete guide for those of you who are looking for ways to limit and manage your own stress at work. You can read it as an individual for your own personal use - or use it as inspiration for how you as a manager can help your employees manage tasks to prevent stress in the workplace. They also give you advice on how to help and spot a stressed colleague.
- Create clear and realistic work tasks: Make sure you give employees clear instructions on their tasks and responsibilities. Check that the workload is realistic and aligned with employee resources.
- Create a positive work culture: A work culture that promotes teamwork, openness and support can help reduce stress and increase wellbeing.
- Communication and feedback: Ensure there is open communication, both between managers and employees and between employees. Regular feedback and recognition of good performance can help reduce stress and increase wellbeing.
- Flexibility and autonomy: Allowing flexible working hours, working from home and autonomy in work tasks can help reduce stress, increase workplace satisfaction and improve work-life balance.
- Support health and wellness: Promote a healthy lifestyle in the workplace with opportunities for exercise and healthy eating. Allow for breaks and relaxation during the workday.
- Prevent physical strain: Ensure that the workplace is ergonomically designed and that employees receive adequate support and training to avoid physical strain.
Training and education: Give employees the opportunity to develop their skills and competencies through training and education. This can boost their confidence and reduce stress in the workplace.
These strategies can help create a healthy and supportive work culture that helps reduce stress and increase wellbeing in the workplace.
How can you manage stress in the workplace once it has occurred?
Once stress has occurred in an employee - and it has been detected by either a manager, colleague or the employee themselves - the manager plays a crucial role in managing it. It's important that managers take it seriously and take immediate action to prevent the stress from developing and negatively impacting the employee's wellbeing and work performance.
One of the most important things a manager can do is communicate with the employee and listen to their concerns and challenges. They should show empathy and understanding and be willing to help the employee find solutions to their problems.
It's also important that managers take responsibility for reducing stress levels in the work environment in general. This can be done by offering training and support to employees, creating clear and realistic tasks and deadlines, and ensuring a healthy work-life balance. Read more about the action areas in the section How to prevent stress in the workplace? in the section above.
Finally, the manager can help the employee manage stress by offering reduced working arrangements or hours to reduce stress levels. If this isn't enough to bring the employee's stress levels down and improve wellbeing, then long-term sick leave is necessary. In many cases, neither the manager nor the employee realizes the excessive and prolonged stress levels until it's too late and long-term sick leave is necessary. Of course, the employee's doctor must be contacted and consulted. Such a situation once again emphasizes how important it is to focus on the psychological work environment and well-being, as the goal must be to either avoid stress among employees altogether - or be able to detect long-term stress before it requires long-term sick leave to recover.
As a manager, it can be challenging to manage stress in individual employees in the best way possible. The task of managing the psychological work environment is complex, and it's not uncommon for managers to feel powerless or doubtful. Most managers will recognize the intersection of conflicting demands that arise in the wake of being responsible for both well-being and performance in the workplace. An intersection that creates tension in the individual and in relationships.
You can learn more about how you as a manager approach mental health management in our course on mental health and wellbeing or read more in articles such as What do we do about the tensions in mental health management? and Wellbeing in the workplace.
How should employees prevent and manage stress in the workplace?
Although it is the workplace's responsibility to set the framework for a good psychological work environment, it is a problem that needs to be solved together. It requires a joint effort from everyone in the workplace to help prevent and limit stress. Therefore, remember that you as an employee also have a responsibility to prevent long-term stress in both yourself and your colleagues.
Make sure you know and remember the warning signs of stress - and get to know yourself and your signals so you can react to them and ask for help in time. It's common for people with long-term stress to miss the warning signs and therefore fail to speak up until it's too late. If you know the warning signs in yourself and others, you're more likely to react in time and avoid long-term stress.
If you are already suffering from long-term stress, it is important that you consult your doctor for advice, help and treatment. Next, it is also important that you contact your workplace and have a dialog with them about what you have come up with in consultation with your doctor. It may be necessary to take long-term sick leave, which also requires a dialog with both your own doctor and employer.
Communication between employees and managers is a stress-reducing factor
Communication is key to reducing stress in the workplace, both between managers and employees, as well as among colleagues. Having an open and honest dialog about workload, deadlines and expectations can help prevent stress. Once stress has occurred, good communication can help to manage it appropriately.
As a manager, it's important to keep an eye on your employees' wellbeing and create a culture where it's acceptable to talk about stress and challenges in the workplace. It's also about empowering employees to influence their working conditions and ensuring a clear focus on wellbeing and stress management.
In addition, as a workplace, it can be a good idea to offer support and help if an employee is experiencing stress or other challenges. This could include coaching, guidance or the opportunity to take a break and recharge.
Remember, a healthy and sustainable workplace requires a joint effort from both managers and employees. By prioritizing open communication, preventative measures and employee support, you can create a workplace where wellbeing and productivity go hand in hand.
Sources:
Sundhed.dk, What is stress, https://www.sundhed.dk/borger/sundhed-og-forebyggelse/livsstil/stress/hvad-er-stress/
Sundhed.dk, Know your stress signals, https://www.sundhed.dk/borger/sundhed-og-forebyggelse/livsstil/stress/signaler-paa-stress/
Arbejdstilsynet, How to prevent stress, https://at.dk/arbejdsmiljoeproblemer/psykisk-arbejdsmiljoe/stress/saadan-forebygges-stress/
Ministry of Employment, Working Environment Act, https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2021/2062
Danske Fysioterapeuter, Stress at work, https://www.fysio.dk/radgivning-regler/arbejdsmiljo/stress-pa-arbejdspladsen
