News: Performance Management
HR professionals blame stress for employee absenteeism
17 April 2008
The majority of human resource (HR) professionals blame stress for the rising number of employees missing from work.
The HR Director reports that the poll of more than 100 HR professionals by Reed Human Resources also found that 76 per cent have seen an increase in the number of staff taking time off work due to stress-related illnesses in the past five years.
While 50 per cent said that unmanageable workloads are the main cause of employee stress, nine per cent believe that pressure from managers is contributing to the trend.
Jason Willis, operations manager, Reed Human Resources, said: "The link between employee absenteeism and rising stress levels is a worrying trend and seems to be affecting the majority of UK workplaces."
The poll follows research from management consultancy Hay which found more than four out of ten managers have a negative effect on their workplaces.
In addition, six in ten managers fail to invoke a high-performance environment for employees while four in ten create an atmosphere that reduces the motivation of staff, Management Issues reports.
