Big companies bury heads in sand over stress

Stress continues to torment companies according to the Employee Benefits/ HSA Healthcare Research 2008. The survey, which is released today, finds that although stress remains a key issue for all employers, it appears to be especially concerning for large companies, and those within the public sector.

In fact, 47% of companies believe stress is a key cause of sickness absence. This figure rises to 64% of respondents with more than 10,000 employees, and goes up to 86% among public sector organisations according to the research.

Glenn Rhodes from Healthplan provider HSA, which sponsored the research, comments: ìOver the years we have supported this survey, stress has increasingly become an issue for organisations. Despite this, many seem to be burying their heads in the sand over the problem. This is especially prevalent within larger organisations, which suffer more sickness absence from stress, yet almost half have no strategy in place to tackle it. Companies need to plan for how best to support their employeesí stress, and could consider a simple and affordable Healthplan containing telephone and face-to-face counselling, such as those offered by HSA.î

Amanda Wilkinson, Editor of Employee Benefits, says: ìThe percentage of organisations citing stress as a major cause of sickness absence has risen for the third year in a row and now stands at 47%. Yet, a large proportion of employers (63%) still do not have a strategy in place to reduce stress in the workplace. This would indicate that they are choosing to ignore what is a significant problem.î

The annual benchmark survey was carried out in April among 502 readers of Employee Benefits magazine in the UK. For further information visit www.employeebenefits.co.uk. HSA Healthplans enable employees to access affordable healthcare, whether for check-ups, treatment or emergencies. For further information call 0800 072 6716 or visit: