A workplace stress can give a huge impacts on health and safety.
Workers who experience stress when their work has reached beyond their capabilities. This normally happen when meeting their deadlines or a certain works not receiving enough support from colleagues or higher managements. This impacts the health and safety experience such as physical, mental and emotional reactions to their working environment and it give a negative impacts on personal well being.
Some worker, not all can’t cope with work changes due to their work demands and therefore they will have negative personal experiences. Although stress is not an physical injury but a long on going stress can lead to mental health such as depression. A work-related stress does not harm physical body but due to stress, they may harm their own personal body or taking drugs just to calm themselves. When a worker have this symptoms, it will not only give impact on themselves but other people and business as well. This obligation is the same for contractors or self employed.
To identify the possible work related stress are physical stress such as headaches, indigestion, tiredness, slow reactions and shortness of breath. Mental stress such as difficulty in decision making and mind forgetfulness. Emotional stress are irritability, excessive worrying, feeling of worthlessness, anxiety, defensiveness, anger and mood swing. Behavioural stress such as diminished performance, withdrawal behaviours, impulsive or risky behaviour and increase in alcohol, drugs and nicotine consumption. Long term health issues are cardiovascular disease, immune deficiency disorder, gastrointestinal disorders, psychiatric and phycological illness such as depression, anxiety, suicide thoughts and musculoskeletal disorders
The best way for managing work related stress in the workplace is to reduce and prevent stress before it gets worse and that would lead to risk health and safety. So a management program must be developed such as consultation with workers, the program needs to identify the areas within the workplace that are likely to cause stress.
Written by Frederick Tan
Sourced from safework.nsw.gov.au