Job Stress The Effect On Employees And

Job Stress: The Effect On Employees And Employers Essay, Research Paper

Job Stress:

The Effect on Employees and Employers

Job stress poses a significant threat to employee health and consequently to the health of an organization. This report will provide information on the causes of stress, the resulting symptoms, the consequences to employers, and the programs employers can implement to reduce the adverse effects of stress in the workplace.

It is important for both employees and employers to recognize and understand stress and its causes. Often times employers confuse job challenges and job stressors. Most employees view a job challenge as a motivating factor, which enables them to grow within their positions. This motivation has the potential to produce positive results for both employees and employers. However, when challenges become demands, employees often resort to the fight or flight response of our primal ancestors. At the sight of a dangerous encounter, the hypothalamus sends a message to the adrenal glands and within seconds the heart is pumping at two or three times the normal speed, sending blood to the major muscle groups with soaring blood pressure. In most cases, the employee does not have the opportunity to fight or flee, and as a result the increased energy is internalized and over time manifests itself as stress. Stress is not an illness, however prolonged exposure to stressful conditions can increase the risk of injury or disease. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (..NIOSH..), job stress can be defined as “the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the employee”. For instance, management style, interpersonal relationships, work roles, career concerns, work-life issues, sociocultural atmosphere, and environmental conditions may all be considered stressors.

The following illustrations represent extreme cases, but a common thread between all of the examples is lack of communication, lack of resources, and lack of control. Typically, people are affected by an assortment of these stressors and at a variety of levels.

Management Style

Many employees suffer from stress caused by managers who expect results without establishing clear goals. An example would be an office head that is responsible for increasing profitability and decreasing overhead, without receiving a budget from the home office. At the end of the year, the office head’s performance cannot be considered objectively. Consequently, his or her incentive compensation becomes subjective.

Interpersonal Relationships In many organizations, workers have little decision-making power. For example, a customer service representative is responsible for fielding incoming calls. Inevitably, the calls are primarily from angry customers concerned about a late shipment. The representative has no control over the shipping department and in fact has virtually no communication with that department. After listening to the customer’s complaints over a period of time, the representative has several suggestions which management could implement in the shipping department that may improve customer satisfaction. Unfortunately, management is not interested in the ideas of a customer service representative. And as a result, the representative is attacked daily by angry customers whose concerns could have been prevented.

Work Roles Some employees suffer from stress caused by excess responsibility and a shortage of time. An example of which might be a salesperson who has a broad scope of responsibilities with little support and a full travel schedule. In many instances, the salesperson is unable to meet unrealistic reporting deadlines because of excessive travel.

Career Concerns Other employees may stress about an impending reorganization and its potential consequences. For example, management hires a consulting firm to evaluate departmental effectiveness and profitability. The employees may feel that management views their work as substandard and is formulating a reduction in forces plan which could ultimately affect their jobs.

Work-Life Issues Often workplace stress is caused by balancing personal and professional responsibilities. For example, a nurse who also has to care for an aging, dependant parent.

Sociocultural Atmosphere Some employees are subjected to an atmosphere of gender bias and/or sexual harassment. For example, a woman works as a real estate broker, which is a male-dominated field. She is constantly subjected to sexual innuendo. She is even made to look incompetent in client meetings by her male counterparts who ask ridiculous and irrelevant questions.

Environmental Conditions Employees are required to perform in adverse working conditions which often cause signs of stress. For instance, a mill worker is subjected to the constant humming of machines.

Repeated exposure to stressful situations such as those mentioned above often cause symptoms such as difficulty concentrating, sleep disturbances, irritability, and boredom. Other warning signs may include upset stomach, job dissatisfaction, muscle tension, and low morale. Studies have shown that stress in the workplace has been linked to some of the leading causes of death, including heart disease, cancer, lung