Work Stress Case Study

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Introduction
Work stress is one of the most important challenges in the 21 century in United Kingdom and globally (Greenberg, 2011). The changing structure of the United Kingdom public sector has increased the range of stressors (Chandola, 2010). These changes have been attributed to the speed in organisational changes internally and externally: such as advances in technology, globalisation and the constant demand to sustain competitive advantage (Ramesar, 2009). This has led to changes in work structures (Corbridge, 2010), such as “labour market flexibility” which was intended to help organisation maximise and build efficiency to compete in the global competitive markets ( Bratton and Gold., 2007, p. 130). These new shift within the public …show more content…

The introduction of private sector management in the public sector, whereby employees are expected to take on more responsibilities as part of an efficiency drive: has led to the diminishing of paid employment in the past twenty years (Wainwright, D. & Caplan, M., 2002). These changes has resulted in public sector workers being subjected to pressures (Lawler, J.,& Hearn , J., 1995), to work faster, produce more with less staff . Notwithstanding the above, a significant increase in work stress in the public sector increase these changes and the culmination of the recession in 2008/2009, government austerity measures in 2010, had led to increase in work stress among public sector workers (Chandola, 2010). The increase in work stress, according to evidence presented by (CIPD, 2012), has not increased, absenteeism statistics shows that public sector absence has fallen to its lowest since (2002) with a figure of 7.9 days per employee per year in (2011). The reduction in absenteeism, however has been attributed to psychosocial hazard such as job insecurity, abnormal workload and presentism.

Legal
There is no legislation in the UK specifically on work stress. However, there is a voluntary approved code of practice (the Health and Safety Management Standards) that is meant to guide employers in matters of work stress. Since the Management Standards came into being in 2004, there has been little decline in work stressors in Britain, and some evidence that work stressors have actually increased since 2009.

Aim of the

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