Work-related stress and how to manage it

2. Causes of stress at work

There are six main areas that can lead to work-related stress if they are not managed properly. These are: demands, control, support, relationships, role and change.

For example, workers may say that they:

  • are not able to cope with the demands of their jobs
  • are unable to control the way they do their work
  • don't receive enough information and support
  • are having trouble with relationships at work, or are being bullied
  • don't fully understand their role and responsibilities
  • are not engaged when a business is undergoing change

Stress affects people differently – what stresses one person may not affect another. Factors like skills and experience, age or disability may all affect whether a worker can cope.

By talking to your workers and understanding how to identify the signs of stress[5], you can prevent and reduce stress in your workplace.

View a printable version of the whole guide[8]

Link URLs in this page

  1. Overviewhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/overview.htm
  2. Signs of stresshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/signs.htm
  3. Stress risk assessmenthttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/risk-assessment.htm
  4. Help for workers on stress at workhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/help-for-workers.htm
  5. signs of stresshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/signs.htm
  6. Previous page Overview https://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/overview.htm
  7. Next page Signs of stress https://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/signs.htm
  8. View a printable version of the whole guidehttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/print.htm
  9. Mental health at workhttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/mental-health.htm
  10. Stress Management Standardshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/standards/index.htm
  11. Stress resourceshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/resources.htm
  12. Case studieshttps://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/casestudies/index.htm

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Updated 2024-06-04