Glasgow Business . 45
www.glasgowchamberofcommerce.com
DISCOVER THE HIDDEN DANGERS AT WORK
It’s not just slips and trips that can have a major impact on staff and businesses
W
hen we think of health and safety in the workplace, it might be
images of hard hats, steel toe-capped boots, protective glasses or hi-vis safety vests which come to mind. But you could be surprised by some of the less obvious dangers that can have an impact on any work environment, including what might appear to be a peaceful office seting. A recent survey by the Trades
Union Congress (TUC) found that the biggest health and safety
hazard facing employees in the UK was, in fact, stress. Te TUC survey of health and
safety representatives revealed that 67 per cent believe stress, and its effect on colleagues, is the biggest health risk at work. TUC General Secretary
Frances O’Grady said: “We may sometimes joke about health and safety culture, but it’s no joke when you become the person lying awake at night from stress, made ill through long hours, a lack of control over your work or bullying in the office. Employers
and managers need to do more to identify and reduce risks and to provide support to employees struggling to cope.” Bullying and harassment, back
strains, slips and trips and falls also ranked among the top five health and safety hazards. And one in six of the workplace reps who completed the survey said their employers were failing to conduct risk assessments, which could breach health and safety law. Te botom line for businesses is
that stressed employees can cost their companies money. Research carried out for the life insurance and pension company Friends Life found that almost a quarter of UK workers surveyed have called in sick with stress in the past year. Tat is
the equivalent to more than seven million employees, and comes at a cost of almost £690 million each day in wasted wages. What’s more, the figures
appear to be rising, with the research finding a large increase in the number of people taking time off work with stress. Tis year’s survey found 23 per cent of those surveyed said they had called in sick because of stress, compared with 16.5 per cent in the previous two years. And the Friends Life research
showed that younger workers appear to be feeling the strain more than older staff. Almost two thirds of 18-24 year olds agreed
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