Heavy workloads blamed for increased stress-related absence

Stress-related absence has increased for two-fifths of organisations in the UK in the past year, according to research, Personnel Today reports. Almost two-thirds (62%) of respondents to the survey said heavy workloads were the top cause of taking time off for stress. The next biggest factor was management style – which has jumped from 32% of respondents last year to 43% this year. A worrying trend observed by the 1 000-plus respondents was ‘leaveism’, the practice of taking annual leave to finish off work. Most respondents – 63% – saw this happening at their workplace, and 55% of these said nothing was being done about it. The report says presenteeism continues to be an issue for 83% of respondents, with a quarter saying the problem has got worse in the past year. The survey’s findings suggest managers could do with more training to support staff with stress. Only 50% of managers had undergone this type of training, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development And in organisations taking steps to tackle either presenteeism or leaveism, only 37% of managers had received any training to spot the warning signs.