Stress and related disorder

Stress and related disorderThe American Institute of Stress claims that stress is America’s No. 1 health problem, and “job stress is the major culprit.” A 2006 Stress Pulse survey by EAP provider ComPsych found that the main causes of stress in respondents’ lives broke down as 46% attributable to workload, 28% attributable to personal issues, and 20% attributable to “juggling work/personal lives” (with the remaining 6% attributable to lack of job security). How do employees deal with stress? A 2006 employee review survey conducted by the Randstad Group found that 57% of Generation Y employees and 26% of baby boomers take off unplanned days from work to deal with stress.

According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, workers who must take time off work because of stress, anxiety, or a related disorder will be off the job for about 20 days. In the 2000 Gallup poll, 80% of people felt stress on the job, and nearly 40% said they needed help managing stress. Problems at work are more strongly associated with health complaints than are any other life stressor–more so than even financial or family problems. St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Co.

Health care expenditures are nearly 50% greater for workers who report high levels of stress. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine According to an International Labor Organization study, Americans put in the equivalent of an extra 40-hour work week in 2000 compared to the ten years previous—nearly a month more than the Japan and three months more than Germans. 40% of employees work overtime or bring work home with them at least once a week. Xylo Report, Shifts in Work and Home Life Boundaries 2000.

Nearly 50% of all US workers feel overwhelmed by a growing number of job tasks and longer working hours. Families and Work Institute, 2001; 88% of employees say they have a hard time juggling work and life. Aon Consulting, 2000

Since 1969, family time for a working couple has shrunk an average of 22 hours a week. U.S. Government; 42% of workers have responsibility for children under 18 years of age. Labor Project for Working Families, January 2000

Workers rate the ability to manage work and family as the most important aspect they look for in a job. Rutgers University and University of Connecticut Survey (2000); 87% of workers are seeking or have sought companies that were flexible, supportive and understanding of personal and family needs. – CareerBuilder Online Survey (2000). 42% of college students and recent graduates said what they value most when making career decisions was work/life balance—more than money (26%), advancement potential (23%) or location (9%). A survey of college students and recent graduates by Jobtrak.com (2000)

A new study released by FWI (Family and Work Institute) in 2005, Overwork in America: When the Way We Work Becomes Too Much reports that one in three American employees are chronically overworked, while 54 percent have felt overwhelmed at some time in the past month by how much work they had to complete.