Stress is, sadly, a familiar concept to us all. Life just is stressful some of the time. For some people, it’s a lot of the time. And stress doesn’t clock off at the end of the day. Most likely, we’ll take work stress home with us, and home stress into work.

 A recent report by Mental Health UK found that one in five working adults needed to take time off work in the last year because of stress-related mental health concerns, and over a third of adults felt ‘high’ or ‘extreme’ levels of pressure/stress ‘always’ or ‘often’. With generally rising levels of people not working due to long-term sickness, having 20% of people needing to take stress leave at some point is very concerning.

 So what can you do to support employees through stress leave, and to help tackle this epidemic of workplace stress? 

Work-related stress

 While employers can do nothing about war, climate change or the economy (unless you happen to work in the Treasury!), they are in the ideal position to try and address the causes of work-related stress – of which there are many.

A common worry is workload. Staff may be reluctant to speak up about struggling with workload, out of fear they will be seen as bad at their job or unable to cope. It’s key that you create an environment of open communication so that people can speak up if they reach their limit.

 Stress can also affect people’s time management skills, making workload feel more burdensome. Flexible working arrangements, such as remote work and a broad suite of leave options will help people manage their time better.

 Ultimately, nothing is more unproductive than a burnt out team member, and if workload is reaching unsustainable levels for prolonged periods then that’s a sign for management that staffing levels are off. 

Be on the lookout for signs that staff are suffering with stress so that you can take early action (eg referring to an EAP if you have one, offering mental health days) to nip any issues in the bud. 

 As an employer, you need to encourage people to take leave and set a good example yourself. Flexible leave policies and generous allowances that allow people to spend time with family, relax and enjoy themselves away from work will go a long way towards helping people achieve a healthy work-life balance that keeps stress to a minimum.

What is stress leave?

 Ultimately, even if you do everything right at work and cut out all work-related causes of stress (as if), there is still life outside of work and people will still be taking sick leave for stress, so you need to know what to do.

 Stress leave refers to the time granted to employees dealing with stress, whether caused by personal issues or work-related challenges, that impacts their mental or physical health. Utilizing a staff leave planner can help businesses streamline the management and monitoring of such absences effectively. Technically, it’s a kind of sick leave, but specifically intended to address mental health challenges. It’s less about physical recovery and avoiding spreading viruses, and more about giving people time and space to mentally recuperate. 

You might have a specific work-related stress policy that you use to tackle this issue. This could involve early intervention and support, stress leave if needed and then a return-to-work interview  and perhaps a phased return. 

What are people’s rights?  

In the UK, there are several key laws that cover stress leave. Both the Employment Rights Act 1999 and the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 require that employers take measures to protect staff from work-related stress and offer a safe working environment. Under the Equality Act 2010, if stress is linked to a diagnosed mental health condition that qualifies as a disability, employers must make reasonable adjustments. In this sense, employees are legally entitled to stress leave, whether it is given that name or not. 

 In terms of pay, staff on stress leave have the same entitlements to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) as they would for a physical illness. But this is the legal minimum. As ever, we are big advocates for employers going above and beyond where you can, and it would be worth thinking about the impact of putting already stressed employees under financial pressure while they’re trying to recuperate. 

Key takeaways 

Stress is an unavoidable part of life, but employers can play a big role in reducing its impact on their staff. Through supportive policies such as stress leave, a healthy workplace culture that prioritises open communication around mental health, and addressing specific work-related stressors, you can hopefully avoid the need for stress leave. But where it’s needed, it should be there.

 Ultimately, stress leave is an investment in employee wellbeing that will pay off in terms of a happier, healthier and more productive workforce. 

Author Phil Norton

Phil is the co-founder of Leave Dates, the employee annual leave planner. He loves problem-solving and making life easier for small businesses. If you book a Leave Dates demo, he will give you a warm welcome and show you everything that you need to know.