Analysis of the problem of Employees stress in the work place - Essay Example

Analysis of the problem of Employees stress in the work place Introduction Most of the employees struggled to achieve a work-life balance because of the increased commitments both in their personal and professional life. Even though current employees are getting better salaries compared to the employees of a decade before, their responsibilities at the work place are more than enough for them to handle. Failure to fulfill the expectations of the employer may result in loss of jobs and hence employees always work under pressure.

According to Lee (2008), “in workplaces where people are constantly afraid and insecure, employees are at risk of "numbing out" to protect themselves” (Lee, 2008). This paper briefly analyses the causes, effects and solutions for employee stress at workplace.Causes of stress in employeesAccording to Dale Collie (2004), the major reasons for employee stress at workplace are due to the lack of; control, communication, appreciation, feedbacks (good or bad), clarity in policies, clarity in career prospects etc.

He also pointed out mistrust, unfairness, office politics, uncertainties, random interruptions, treadmill syndrome (a state of too much or too little to do) etc as the other major factors which can cause stress at workplace (Collie, 2004). Current organizations are functioning at a rapid pace and in most of the times; these organizations fail to communicate properly with the employees. Lack of communication may often results in the development of ambiguity among the employees about their responsibilities, career prospects, organizational policies etc.

Sometimes the employees may have too much workload whereas some other times they may have less workload. Too much workload may result in fear of failures which may increase the stress. On the other hand, less workload may also develop stress because of the concerns of the security of the employment. Effects of stress on employeesImtiaz and Ahmad (n. d) have mentioned that “higher level of stress existed with no managerial concern for solution consequently lowering the employee performance; staking organizational reputation and loss of skilled employees” (Imtiaz and Ahmad, n. d, p.1).

It is difficult to avoid stress completely; but it is possible to reduce it. Too much employee stress is not good either to the employer or to the employee. The employee may loss his productivity because of too much stress. Moreover, too much stress can cause physical and psychological problems to the employees. Stress can increase the blood pressure which can lead to heart problems, stroke, paralyzing etc. It can also cause psychological problems like depression, anxiety, schizophrenia etc. Solutions for employee stressJeanne Segal, Ph.D (2008) has provided many solutions for reducing stress.

In his opinion, creation of a balance schedule, reducing over commitments, breaking complex projects into small steps, learning better communication skills, prioritizing of tasks, sleeping well, developing self awareness, self management, social awareness, increasing relationships etc are some of the solutions of reducing stress (Segal Ph.D, 2008). The employer has limitations in reducing the employee stress level. No employer would like to reduce the workloads of the employee as it may reduce his profits.

Under such circumstances, only the employee has to take conscious efforts to reduce his stress. The employee should achieve a balance between the work and life and for that purpose effective time management is necessary. ConclusionsEmployee stress is a universal phenomenon. Too much employee stress in not good for both the employer and the employee. Whenever possible, employees should take some break from their jobs and spent some time with the family and friends. The interactions with family and friends will reduce the stress up to certain extent.

References1. Collie, D., (2004), Top 10 Causes of Workplace Stress,[Online], Available at: http://www.businessknowledgesource.com/blog/top_10_causes_of_workplace_stress_000810.html [Accessed 25 July 2010]2. Imtiaz, S. and Ahmad, S (n. d), Impact Of Stress On Employee Productivity, PerformanceAnd Turnover; An Important Managerial Issue, [Online], Available at: http://www.wbiconpro.com/25.Subha.pdf , [Accessed 25 July 2010]3. Lee, D., (2008), Articles and Reports: Employee Stress and Performance,[Online], (Originally published in Training Scene), Available at: http://www.

humannatureatwork.com/Workplace-Stress-2.htm [Accessed 25 July 2010]4. Segal, J. Ph.D, (2008), Stress at Work: How to Reduce and Manage Job and Workplace Stress [Online], Available at: http://helpguide.org/mental/work_stress_management.htm[Accessed 25 July 2010]