Staff wellbeing and the cost of stress

Your staff are your greatest assets. Therefore ensuring the wellbeing of those staff is like ensuring a car is well maintained in order to continue to get performance out of it and prevent it from breaking down.  Wear and tear take their toll.

Stress policy in schools

Schools have introduced a new stress policy. It has been noted that staff are struggling to cope with the demands of day to day work. As well as short term pressures and external situations.  All of these are having an impact on the staff, and therefore the quality of learning for students. Not to mention the bottom line for the school. After all, covering absent teachers is an expense they could do without.

Stress and your business

• What is the cost of absence due to stress related illness in your company…?
• What are the costs of replacing members of staff who leave because they are not coping with the demands of the job…?
• How productive are staff members when they are feeling stressed…?
• How can you tell if they are stressed?

Stress can be described as a feeling associated with one’s perception of their ability to cope with the demands that they believe are important parts of their role.

However, from my experience this stress can be resolved through a few simple things:

• Improving self-esteem, helps staff members to understand that their capabilities are beyond their perception of them. Work carries on at the same level, but the feeling of stress has gone.
• Better Time Management practices. So they are working more effectively, and in order of priority. This helps them to cope with the demand. And also to have a better handle on which parts of their work are actually important, and which bits can wait, or be delegated.
• Better Leadership & Management. So whether that’s reducing the stress of the manager by them being better able to delegate and bring their staff up to speed to support them. Or whether that is providing better support for those they are responsible for who are feeling stressed.
• Encouraging healthy staff habits. Whether that’s introducing lunchtime yoga or meditation sessions. Create a quiet area for people to go if they need a little breathing space. Or encourage positive health habits by introducing policies that reward it.

All of these approaches can significantly reduce the cost of stress on your organisation, improve morale and productivity. Pro-actions provide a number of free seminars. Some of the most popular ones are the Time Management and Leadership & Management events.  Come and try one out for free. Or ask us about providing a bespoke workshop for your company.

About the author:

Vicky Kelly is a specialist in helping individuals meeting their own potential, and would be happy to discuss with you how she can help your staff meet theirs.