Stress_in_the_Workplace

Stress in the Workplace Felicia Wimberly Foundations for General Education and Professional Success (GEN 200) June 21, 2010 Professor Angela Oleson Abstract Current economic times and the dwindling of resources have increased the amount of stress in the workplace. Employees are no longer able to walk away from a job and readily find another one due to the lack of available jobs within the economy. Employers realize this factor although unfair and often times capitalize on it. This realization forces the employees to work through circumstances such as: ineffective management and lazy fellow employees, who in the past they might have resigned from any job structured inadequately. But if they want to continue to receive a paycheck they have to find a way to deal with the extenuating circumstances thus causing work related stress because the employee feels helpless with no way out. This type of work induced stress effects not only the employee but the company as whole because the company is no longer receiving the employee’s best his productivity will dwindle due to lack of support from management. So the company will achieve below par work production from any employee under extreme stress (i.e. excess absences, health problems). (Hinton, 2010). It is important that companies pay attention to stress indicators and make the necessary adjustments to help their employees reduce their stress level. Stress in the Workplace Stress is a state of physiological imbalance in the body which has unpleasant emotional and cognitive components. When a person is stressed, the brain releases powerful hormones called glucocorticoids which are meant to operate for a short period of time (Hussin, 2008). So any prolonged stress or frequent periods of stress are harmful to the body. Workplace stress is leading more people to engage in counterproductive workplace behaviors (Arellano, 2007). Meeting deadlines, companies downsizing and the feeling that workers have to work longer and harder to maintain their current economic status, are added pressures that workers face form outside forces (Arellano, 2007). Sources of job related stress may include but are not limited to: * Unclear job expectations * Short deadlines (i.e. last minute work assignments). * Responsible for major work assignments but no decision making authority. * Limited resources. * Chaotic work environment (i.e. rude co-workers, noisy). * Routine, monotonous jobs with no room for growth or creative input. * No feedback from management (i.e. job performance or job status) * Unable to voice concerns about the without fear of repercussions. The key to addressing the above factors for management would be clearly stated, fairly implemented, and firmly enforced policies, rules and regulations (Evans, 1990). If an employee handbook is issued to each employee this would be considered the ’bible’ for the organization to follow when stress related issues arise. Unfortunately in this day and age even with an employee handbook there are exceptions to the rules. With so many individuals out of work these days’ employers no longer are offering their employees job security. An employer knows for every position there are how many people waiting to apply and fill the position. This applies to the skilled as well as the unskilled labor so knowing this keeps employees on edge always looking over their shoulder afraid to make the slightest mistake to give management a reason to terminate them. This is evident when you see persons with terminal degrees applying for lower management positions of which they are overly qualified but because of the economy their previous job has downsized or was taken over by a parent company and new management was brought in so they have to seek any employment available to keep the bills paid. This can attribute to their stress level and effect job performance and cause health issues making the situation worse if not dealt with appropriately on the job (Hinton, 2010). Conclusion The effects of stress in the workplace are substantial and unfortunately will only increase if the economy does not improve. With employees working longer hours and having increased job responsibilities stress is undeniable and unavoidable. Employees are dependent on management to recognize the stress inducers and make changes in the workplace to lower the stress levels of their employees if they expect them to be productive within the company. If employees are happy productivity will increase this is a ‘win win’ situation for everyone. References Arellano, J. (2007). Stress in the workplace. RURAL COMMUNICATIONS, (), 1. doi: Evans, T. (1990). Stress in the workplace. BLACK ENTERPRISE, 21(2), 77. Hinton, D. (2010). Workplace stress. Dermatology Nursing, 22(1), 1. Wan Hussin, W. (2008). Managing stress at the workplace. THE JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT AWARENESS, 11(2), 16-26.