How to help reduce stress in employees
Stress goes with the job - most jobs. And the signals of stress include apathy, fatigue, tension, frustration, detachment, boredom, irritability, hopelessness, a sense of not being appreciated, deteriorating health, and absenteeism. Your staff are not immune from stress - in fact, you may well be the cause of it. But, as a manager, you can help to alleviate employee stress in a number of ways...
1. Be reasonable in your expectations.
Don’t make unreasonable demands on employees. Extra duties take them away from core tasks and make their goals more difficult or impossible to achieve. Often we apply too much pressure on our staff to satisfy our own values or ambitions.
2. Be decisive, clear, and unambiguous.
When managers inappropriately delay making decisions or reverse previous decisions, employees report that they experience more stress than when firm, timely decisions are made. So collect relevant data, set achievable deadlines, and make decisions at the appropriate time. As well, lack of timely information about rules, standards, evaluative criteria, and goals causes confusion, uncertainty, and frustration. Effective communication is vital.
3. Create a supportive work environment.
Some work environments often isolate workers from one another and make it difficult for them to receive the encouragement and support of colleagues. Foster a supportive network to allow your staff to share problems and resources; colleagues’ support softens the effects of stress on staff members’ lives.
