osh in figures: stress at work – facts and figures

OSH in figures: Stress at work – Facts and figures

Stress is the second most frequently-reported work-related health problem, affecting 22% of workers from the EU 27 (in 2005) Studies suggest that stress is a factor in

between 50% and 60% of all lost working days. This represents a huge cost in terms of both human distress and impaired economic performance

The number of people suffering from stress-related conditions caused or made worse by work is likely to increase due to the changing world of work which is making increased demands on workers

Stress – facts and figuresIntroduction

“Work-related stress is experienced when the demands of the work environment exceed the workers’ ability to cope with (or control) them”

If the stress response continues over a longer period, or if it is particularly intense, this may have serious consequences on health


Symptoms of work-related stress Organisational:

o accidents, errors, increased costs from compensation or health care, reduced productivity, absenteeism, high staff turnover, harassment, poor time-keeping and disciplinary problems.

Symptoms of work-related stress o Physiological: back problems, weakened immunity, peptic

ulcers, heart problems, hypertension. o Cognitive: difficulty in concentrating, remembering, learning

new things, making decisions o Emotional: irritability, anxiety, sleep problems, depression,

hypochondria, alienation, burnout, relationship problems o Behavioural: abuse of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco


Work affects health (% yes)*

*European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions. Fourth European Working Conditions Survey, 2005.

20.2

30.4 30.9

10.311.5 11

7.6

11.9

15.9

7.9 7.28.9

0

10

20

30

40

stress irritability sleepingproblems

anxiety

EU-15NMS-10AC-2

Stress – facts and figuresPrevalence

In 2005, the level of reported stress was lower in EU15 than in EU10 or in two Acceding Countries (Bulgaria and Romania)

The level of reported stress in EU countries*


21

17

27

16

32

55

2118

16

27

33

37

31

27 2628

21

35

28

38

31

25

38

12

18

35

16

22

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

BE

CZ

DK

DE

EE EL

ES

FR IE IT

CY LV LT LU HU MT

AT

PL

PT SI

SK FI

SV

UK

BG

RO NL

EU

27


The highest levels of stress were reported in Greece (55%), and in Slovenia (38%), Sweden (38%), and Latvia (37%), whereas the lowest levels were registered in United Kingdom (12%), Germany, Ireland, and the Netherlands (16%) as well as in the Czech Republic (17%), France and Bulgaria (18%).

The level of reported physical violence and harassment (bullying) at work in EU-27 (% yes)*


6

1.8

4.3

5.1

1.8

0

2

4

6

8

threats ofphysicalviolence

physicalviolence from

colleagues

physicalviolence fromother people

harassment(bullying)

unwantedsexual

attention



Change in tempo of work during last 12 months (2002) *

Tempo at one’s workplace has:

Finland%

Lithuania%

Latvia%

Estonia%

considerably increased 18 11 13 11

somewhat increased 30 34 31 31

remained the same 48 43 47 48

somewhat decreased 3 8 6 5

considerably decreased 0 1 1 1

do not know 1 3 2 4

Number of respondents N=1297 N=909 N=904 N=900

*The Working Life Barometer in the Baltic Countries , 2002.

Health problems among workers reporting job insecurity (Spain, 2007)*


1618.6

16.8

13 11.9

7.6

11.8 11.69.7

8.36.3

3.7

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Difficulties infalling asleepor sleeping

badly

Feeling ofconstanttiredness

Headaches Sickness Difficulties inconcentrating

andmaintainingattention

Difficulties inremembering

and forgettingthings easily

I may lose job during 6 m.- agree

I may lose job during 6 m - disagree

*VI Encuesta Nacional de Condiciones de Trabajo, 2007

Stress prevalence Health problems such as e.g. tiredness or headaches are significantly more frequent among people who feel job insecurity

The Netherlands: the most prevalent cause of becoming work disabled is psychological or mental disorder*


*The Netherlands Center for Occupational Diseases

European workers (%) reporting stress, overall fatigue, sleeping problems, anxiety, and irritability by age (2005)*

Stress – facts and figuresStress by age

13.1 14.3

3.5 35.5

23.2 22

8.2 7.9

11

24.3 23.4

9.9 9.412.1

17.9 19.1

7.7 7.18.5

0

10

20

30

stress overall fatigue sleeping problems anxiety irritability

%

-24 25-39 40-54 55+


The highest stress level is observed among middle aged workers, and the lowest among older and younger workers.

Percentage of workers who consult a doctor because of stress at work by age (Spain, 2003)*

Stress – facts and figuresStress by age

0.005.00

10.0015.0020.0025.0030.0035.0040.0045.00

18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 ≥65

Perc

enta

ge

*V Encuesta Nacional de Condiciones de Trabajo, 2003

Among the workers who consulted a doctor because of stress, the majority belonged to the 35-44 and 25-34 age groups.

European workers (%) reporting stress, overall fatigue, sleeping problems, anxiety, and irritability by gender (2005)*

Stress – facts and figuresStress by gender

22.9 23

8.5 7.7

11.2

20.3 19.1

8 7.99.6

0

10

20

30

stress overall fatigue sleepingproblems

anxiety irritability

%

male female


Men reported work-related stress more frequently than women (23% and 20% respectively), however this difference is not very big

Perceived increase of mental stress at work (considerable or somewhat) by gender (2002)*

42

42

52

43

36

34

44

34

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

Latvia

Estonia

Lithuania

Finland

%

men

w omen

*The Working Life Barometer in the Baltic Countries , 2002.


Women reported higher increase of mental stress at work (during last 12 months)

Workers reporting work stress by gender (Belgium, 2004)*

72.4

26.7

10

69.8

30.2

10.6

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

%

Male Female

Non-problematic

Problematic

Acutely problematic


*Flemish Workability Monitor, 2004

Women have problems with stress at work slightly more often than men. The percentages of men and women for whom stress at work is an acute problem do not differ significantly

Physical violence, bullying/harassment and unwanted sexual attention by gender (2005), EU-25?*

6

1.7

4.74.3

0.8

6.3

2.1

4.1

6.2

3

0

2

4

6

8

Threat of physicalviolence

Physical violencefrom colleagues

Physical violencefrom other people

Bullying/harassment Unwanted sexualattention

%

Men Women



Prevalence of reported physical violence is similar among women and men. Women, especially young women, are more at risk of harassment/bullying and unwanted sexual attention than men.

Prevalence of stress, anxiety and irritability by sector (2005), EU-27?*

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Agriculture

Manufacture and mining

Electricity, gas and water supply

Construction

Wholesale and retail trade

Hotels and restaurants

Transport and communication

Financial intermediation

Real estate

Public administration and defence

Education and health

Stress

Anxiety

Irritability


Stress – facts and figuresStress by sector

In 2005 stress was the most prevalent in the education and health sectors, as well as in agriculture, hunting, foresty & fishing (28.5%).

Ranking of stress indicators Averagescore

1. Burnout / depression / emotional exhaustion 3.62

2. High absenteeism / sickness 2.60

3. Sleeping problems / insomnia 2.51

4. Cardiovascular diseases / symptoms 2.50

5. Frequent interpersonal conflicts 2.42

6. Migraines 2.39

7. Hypertension / high blood pressure 2.34

8. Gastrointestinal disorders 2.08

9. High staff turnover 1.67

10. Addictions (drinking, smoking, drugs) 1.48

Ranking of stress indicators in educational sector according to teacher unions (2007)*


*European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE), 2007.

Physical violence by sector, EU-27?*

1.8

1.3

3.8

5.4

9.3

9.8

1.7

2.2

11.6

14.6

1.4

4.5

1.9

4.5

7.4

7.2

3.1

1.4

8.8

8.4

1.2

1.1

1.9

0.7

1.3

1.7

0

0.5

3.5

5

0 10 20


Electricity , gas and water supply

Construction

Whole sale and retail trade




Real estate

Public admnistration and defence


%

Threat of physical violence Physical v iolence from other people Physical v iolence from colleagues



Education and health and public administration and defence are the sectors most affected by physical violence

Bullying/harassment and unwanted sexual attention by sector*

4.1

5.9

2.9

6.1

8.6

6.9

2.4

3.1

5.3

7.8

1.4

0.5

0.8

1.8

3.9

2.6

1.9

1.3

1.3

2.7

0 10


Electricity, gas and water supply

Construction

Whole sale and retail trade




Real estate

Public admnistration and defence


%

Bullying / harassment Unwanted sexual attention



Hotels and restaurants, education and health and transport and communication sectors most affected by bullying /harassment

Prevalence of work-related stress in different occupations (Poland, 1997- 2000)*

"Stress refers to a situation in which a person feels tense, restless, nervous, or anxious, or is unable to sleep at night because the mind is troubled all the time. Do

you feel that kind of stress these days?"

26.6

34

22.9

21.2

30.2

24.8

18.1

30.6

29.6

0 10 20 30 40

All occupations

Teachers

Public transport drivers

IT specialists

Government and local government administration clerks

Salesmen

Construction workers

Middle medical staff

Bank workers

%

Stress – facts and figuresStress by occupation

*Central Institute for Labour Protection – National Research Institute, 2000

Teachers, middle medical staff, government and local government administration clerks, and bank workers reported highest level of stress

0 10 20 30 40

Unskilled/experiencedblue-collar w orkers

Skilled blue-collarw orkers and technicians

Non-management w hite-collar w orkers

Educational or carefunctions

Middle-managers/professionals

Seniormanagement/directors

%

Problematic

Acutely problematic

Percent of workers reporting work-related stress by occupation (Belgium, 2004)*

Stress – facts and figuresStress by occupation

*Flemish Workability Monitor, 2004

Senior managers / directors and middle managers /professionals reported highest level of stress

Occupational diseases by sector (the Netherlands, 2005)*


0 20 40 60 80 100

Manufacturingindustry

Health care

Construction

Education

Transport

Reparation andtrade

Financialinstitutions

%

Psychological diseases

Musculoskeletal diseases

Hearing diseases

Skin diseases

*The Netherlands Center for Occupational Diseases, 2005

Psychological diseases are the most prevalent in education, financial institution and health care

European workers reporting stress and stress-related health problems by employment status (self-employed and employee) (2005), EU-27?*

Stress – facts and figuresStress by employment status

24.927.3

9.4 911.2

17.3

3.3

21.3 20.2

8.1 7.6

10.4

14.3

1.8

0

10

20

30

stress overallfatigue

sleepingproblems

anxiety irritability headaches heartdiseases

%Self-employed employee


Well-being scores for self-employed workers are lower than for employed workers

Lack of control at work reported by workers on permanent and temporary contracts (Spain, 2007)*

Stress – facts and figuresStress by employment status

24.4

11.2

22.2 24.5 23.7 24.319.5

35.1 36.8 35.7 36.936.5

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Terms ofholidays

Employingow n ideas

Order oftasks

Methods ofw ork

Rhythm ofw ork

Breaks

Permanent Temporary

*VI Encuesta Nacional de Condiciones de Trabajo, 2007

Workers on temporary contracts have lower control over their work compared to workers on permanent contracts

In 2002, the European Commission reported that the yearly cost of work-related stress in the EU15 was EUR 20.000 million each year France: the cost to society of occupational stress is

somewhere between EUR 830 and EUR 1.656 million, the equivalent of between 10% and 20% of all expenditure by the Occupational Accident and Disease branch of the social security system

The Netherlands: most of the costs to society of poor working conditions come from work-related absence and disability, which are mainly caused by musculoskeletal disorders (43% of the all diagnoses) and psychological diseases (40%).

UK: In 2005/6 work related stress, depression and anxiety cost Great Britain in excess of £530 million.

Stress – facts and figuresCosts of stress

The main emerging psychosocial risks identified in the forecasts*: New forms of employment contracts and job insecurity

(the use of more precarious contracts together with the trend towards lean production and outsourcing)

The OSH risks for the ageing workforce Work intensification - high workload and work pressure High emotional demands at work, violence and

harassment Poor work-life balance Combined exposure to psychosocial and physical risks

All of these risks affect workers’ health and safety. They may increase work-related stress and lead to serious deterioration of mental and physical health.

Stress – facts and figuresEmerging risks

*EU-OSHA – European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2005-2007

Agency’s information on stress: http://osha.europa.eu/en/topics/stress

Publication: http://osha.europa.eu/en/publications/reports/TE-81-08-478-EN-C_OSH_in_figures_stress_at_work/view

European Risk Observatory: http://riskobservatory.osha.europa.eu

European Agency for Safety and Health at Work: http://osha.europa.eu/

Thank you for your attention!

Stress – facts and figuresMore information available at:

http://osha.europa.eu/en/topics/stress

http://osha.europa.eu/en/publications/reports/TE-81-08-478-EN-C_OSH_in_figures_stress_at_work/view

http://osha.europa.eu/en/publications/reports/TE-81-08-478-EN-C_OSH_in_figures_stress_at_work/view

http://riskobservatory.osha.europa.eu/

http://riskobservatory.osha.europa.eu/

http://osha.europa.eu/



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