Audits will stress bosses (From Warrington Guardian)

Audits will stress bosses

A PRESSURE group in Knutsford last week criticised Government attempts to introduce stress audits in offices.

The Forum of Private Business, based in Drury Lane, said employers did not need to contend with more red tape.

"For many small and micro businesses, having to conduct time-consuming stress audits would be a nightmare," said head of policy Alison Fletcher.

"It would hoover up valuable time that would otherwise be spent doing the vital work of actually running a business."

The Forum, which represents 25,000 firms, last week rejected the Health and Safety Executive's stress audit plans.

On Wednesday, which was National Stress Awareness Day, the pressure group said it was good that officials had raised the issue.

Stress

But Ms Fletcher said employers simply needed better education and information about recognising the signs of stress.

"Employers need guidance on identifying the telltale signs of stress such as bad temper and time off so they can address the root causes of it rather than the symptoms," she said.

Stress causes an estimated 13million lost working days each year in the UK, which costs businesses £3.7billion.

Earlier this year the Forum helped officials to create a European Union framework of action to combat the problem.

Last week the Health and Safety Executive said its management standards advice would not introduce new regulations.

Minister for Work Jane Kennedy said the guidelines simply helped organisations to cope with stress efficiently.

"We need to work on practical methods that show organisations how easy it can be to tackle and prevent health issues," she said.

"The management standards for work-related stress provide an excellent example."