Occupational stress is ongoing stress related to work, caused by job responsibilities, corporate culture, or personality conflicts. Excessive stress can lead to lack of productivity, emotional and physical ailments. Employers use programs to reduce stress levels, including confidential reporting methods, career counseling, and employee committees. Tools like the occupational stress index and stress indicators help identify potential negative stress. Counseling and training programs teach employers and employees how to contain or eliminate stress factors, resulting in higher productivity and a positive work environment.
Occupational stress is a term used to define ongoing stress related to the workplace. Stress can have to do with the responsibilities associated with the job itself, or be caused by conditions that are based on corporate culture or personality conflicts. As with other forms of tension, work-related stress can eventually affect physical and emotional well-being if not managed effectively.
Stress is an intrinsic factor in any type of vocation or career. At best, the presence of stress can be a motivation that pushes the individual to strive for excellence. However, an excessive amount of stress can lead to a lack of productivity, a loss of confidence and an inability to perform routine tasks. As a result, quality employees lose enthusiasm for their work and eventually retire from the company.
If left unchecked, occupational stress can lead to emotional and physical ailments that have begun to affect one’s personal and professional life. The individual may develop a level of tension that interferes with sleep, making it impossible to relax outside of the workplace. Over time, stress can trigger emotional disturbances such as anxiety, depression, and in some cases various phobias that further inhibit your ability to enjoy any aspect of life.
During the mid-20th century, employers began initiating programs to help reshape corporate cultures in an effort to minimize the amount of productive stress experienced in the workplace. For many companies, this has meant developing a definition of occupational stress that is relevant to the individual company and the working environment as it currently stands. With the operational definition in place, employers have begun using resources such as confidential reporting methods, career counseling and employee committees to identify areas where the company climate could be improved while reducing stress levels.
Over the years, the tools used to effectively identify and deal with work stress have continued to evolve. Today, there is a standard occupational stress index that is used in many stress management programs to assess the potential for negative stress to undermine one or more employees. There are also various incarnations of a list of occupational stress indicators that can help people determine whether general conditions have the potential to lead to unhealthy levels of stress.
In response to tools such as the Work Stress Scale, employee counseling and training programs often include individual and group counseling opportunities. These programs seek to teach employers and employees how to look at the workplace objectively, then take steps to contain or eliminate factors that have a high probability of undermining employee confidence and function. As a result, the business enjoys a higher level of productivity and the employee enjoys a more positive work environment within a business that is more likely to provide employment for many years to come.
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