HSE invites leaders to the Stress Summit 2017

Half a million workers across Britain are suffering from work-related stress, depression or anxiety. Forty two percent of self-reported cases were new in 2015/16 (Labour Force Survey). In every workplace, the employer has a duty to ensure the health, safety and welfare of the people they employ. The ethos of health and safety legislation is prevention – stopping a person being injured or made unwell by their work makes better financial sense for the employer.

Estimates of how much work-related stress costs Great Britain each year range from £3billion to £100billion. Basic costs of the 11.7 million working days lost may account for the lower estimate. But if you start to add up the costs of lost production (including the reduced productivity) to those in work who may experience physical symptoms such as difficulty concentrating, the cost of replacement staff and the medical treatment for sufferers, you can see how the bill starts to mount up.

There is a hierarchy of steps for tackling risks that can’t be avoided. They need to be assessed and dealt with initially by ‘combating the risks at source’.  HSE developed the Management Standards (MS) approach which allows an employer to assess the risk to employees from work-related stress.

How to attend

The summit will be held on Thursday 16 March 2017 at:

Queen Elizabeth II Centre
Broad Sanctuary
London
SW1P 3EE

Find out more at The Stress Summit 2017.

For further information go to the work-related stress pages on HSE’s website.