A new study is urging employers to encourage their staff to take a holiday this year to reduce stress levels.
The study, commissioned by Diamond Resorts International alongside Nielsen Research, was of more than 2,000 respondents aged 25 and older and found that 63 per cent of respondents had no plans to go on holiday this year, despite the fact that those who take a break are more satisfied and happy with their lives overall.
Separate research conducted by The Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) in 2011, also found that more than half of managers in the UK feel compelled to work while on annual leave and that nearly a fifth return from holiday feeling more stressed than when they left.
Work-related stress is a serious occupational health issue and can be costly to employers in a number of ways, including turnover, recruitment costs and low staff morale.
The study explained that with more than half of employees currently prioritising work over play, it is likely that bosses will find themselves dealing with a stressed and weary workforce and urged employers to encourage their employees to go on holiday this year, so that staff fell more rested and have a more positive frame of mind.
High stress levels among staff correlates with a high staff turnover, and accounting for all elements of the recruitment process – from advertising costs to training for new recruits – the findings showed that each employee lost could cost up to £30,614 to replace.
In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, ‘Burnout, stress and being human’, Heather Beach is joined by Stacy Thomson to discuss burnout, perfectionism and how to deal with burnout as an individual, as management and as an organisation.
We provide an insight on how to tackle burnout and why mental health is such a taboo subject, particularly in the workplace.
