2009-06-24

By Editor, CIR

The UK's long hours culture is imposing a toll on employees' health, says insurer Aviva Risk Management Solutions (ARMS).

The insurer, formerly Norwich Union Risk Services, cites figures for 2007-08 showing a total of 13.5 million working days lost to work-related stress, depression and anxiety.

"According to The Trade Union Congress the credit crunch is putting extra pressure on people in both their personal and professional lives, with four million in the UK working over 48 hours a week and a worrying percentage of the population working more than 60 hours per week," says James Draper, principal consultant for ARMS.

"What's disturbing is that more than half of employers (59%) do not associate long hours with productivity and 46% do not reward staff who work late or out of hours."

Aviva's latest healthcare report, Health of the Workplace, shows that nearly 60% of workers think the current climate is making both them and their colleagues feel stressed and under pressure, while 45% say that their company has no provision for dealing with stress.

From a GP's perspective, nine out of 10 believe that stress-related illness will increase in the recession and be the biggest occupational health issue of 2009.
According to Draper: "Organisations should oversee employees who are struggling to cope. Consider flexible working patterns and, if possible, increase resources and decrease workloads. Firms should be setting a good example in these tough times by not encouraging staff to waive Working Time Legislation and steer clear of pay scales being linked to increased hours and work loads.

"Training and development programmes should be implemented through human resources departments to improve time management and delegation. Top management behaviour and commitment should also be encouraged to change the business culture to raise awareness of the issue."

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