A recent survey by law firm Michael Lewin Solicitors show that many victims of stress related illness blame poor management as a contributing factor

Posted: 20 November 2014

A recent survey by law firm Michael Lewin Solicitors show that many victims of stress related illness blame poor management as a contributing factor. Full survey results here.

Reason for Stress

Out of the 81 people who answered and admitted to suffering from stress at work in the past, 62 of them blamed poor management.

Other popular responses were excessive workload, with 49 people blaming this as a contributing factor, and bullying and discrimination contributed towards 39 cases, almost half the r in the survey.

With poor management and excessive workload scoring so high as contributing factors to stress at work, it’s still evident that despite the rise in stress in the workplace, a large majority of companies aren’t doing enough to help prevent it.

Afraid of Telling Employer

Another question included in the survey asked respondents if they were afraid to tell their employers about their stress. A massive 64% claimed that they were afraid, showing that stress is still a stigma in many places of work.

When asked why this was, there was a number of different responses, with many pointing to a similar reason.

"impact on career progression"

"My line manager was the main cause of the stress"

"They would probably think I wasn't up to the job. Might get the sack."

"No one to speak to."

"Them thinking I can't cope"

"Scared of manager"

"Discrimination and no career progression"

"I felt that I would not be listened too and everyone else was looking after their own agendas."

"Not taken seriously and no confidentiality."

"Lack of support and understanding. When I did tell them they brought an investigation against me after I returned from sick leave due to stress. This then caused me to have a nervous breakdown."

"Didn't want to be seen as someone that couldn't cope."

"Fear of failure."

"Appear weak and you become a target."

"Unsympathetic response. Lack of care. Stigma."

"Showing signs of weakness would make me a target for victimization by management."

"Really scary and unapproachable boss who doesn't listen and just refers you back to your contact."

Training Not Adequate

Richard Coulthard, head of the stress at work department at Michael Lewin Solicitors said "The results from our survey are very similar to what we see in day to day practice. A lot of issues are caused in the workplace by poor management styles or managers not being provided with adequate training to enable them to understand how to manage staff appropriate. This can in turn have a significant long term effect on an employee’s health."

Richard went on to say that "Employers need to do more to minimise the cause of stress at work but also to reassure staff that they should disclose when work is affecting their health. The vast majority of individuals are reluctant to disclose mental health issues due to the stigma attached to such disclosure."