Workplace Demands

Unreasonable levels of demand in the workplace are a primary cause of work related stress and can lead directly to lost time through absenteeism.

Whilst demands in themselves are a completely normal aspect of work, if you feel unable to achieve them because of a lack of time or resources, then you might regard them as unreasonable.

This problem is often due to unrealistic expectations about what can be achieved in the time allowed or failing to take account of the complex nature of certain jobs.

Demands in the workplace include issues such as the daily workload, working patterns, the availability of resources critical to the job function and the working environment.

Organisations in which the level of workplace demands are well managed and resourced tend to report that;

Their employees are able to cope with the demands of their jobs and systems are in place locally to respond to any individual concerns.

Conversely, those environments in which employees are unable to cope with the level of demands made upon them frequently suffer high levels of staff absenteeism.

How Should Demands Be Managed?

The organisation provides employees with adequate and achievable demands in relation to the agreed hours of work, people’s skills and abilities are matched to the job demands.

Jobs are designed to be within the capabilities of employees and employees’ concerns about their work environment are addressed and managed effectively.

Solving Work Related Stress

Work related stress tends to be dealt with in one of two principal ways;

• Employers who provide support after the employee has become too stressed to attend work (crisis management), and
• Employers who provide training and support before employees become too stressed (mental health prevention).

Although the second option is clearly the best solution, many employers fail to recognise the advantages of preventative, proactive support and tend to offer support (if at all) only once the employee has become absent from work.

Research into the cost v benefits of providing preventative support shows unequivocally that the costs associated with employees who are absent are significantly greater than the costs of proactive training.

Resilience Training

Lee Psychology have been delivering Resilience Training sessions to the NHS Integrated Care Boards (Sandwell & West Birmingham, The Black Country and Birminham & Solihull ICBs) since 2018.

Our training programmes are based on scientifically proven CBT pronciples and can be delivered as both group training seminars (half and full-days) as well as one-to-one personalised programmes (face-to-face or remotely using Zoom).

CBT Support

If you have employees who are struggling with work related stress (for whatever reason) we are also able to provide support using Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

Our 10 session CBT course is available in the following formats:

• Self-directed Online course over 10 modules.
• Clinically supported CBT course using our Online course with either 2, 5 or 10 face-to-face sessions (in-clinic or suing Zoom).

If you’d like to find out more about how we can support you and your organisation, then get in touch with Paul.

Business Psychology Support Services

If you’re looking to support your staff with their mental wellness, resilience or general wellbeing, then why not get in touch with Paul to find out more about how we can help.