The Long hours work culture in the UK is reaching crisis point, with 53 per cent of the nation's workforce suffering from work-related stress, according to a report by the International Stress Management Association and Royal & SunAlliance.
The report reveals that British businesses are failing to address the implications of the '24/7' work culture in the UK, where one in four people now take time off work as the result of work-related stress.

Other catalysts of workplace stress include deadlines, cited by 62 per cent of the respondents, an unsupportive work environment (40 per cent) and difficulties in maintaining a suitable work/life balance.

One in two workers have suffered from stress at work in the last 12 months, while one in four has had to take time off due to pressure.

More than 65 per cent of respondents said that high stress levels are reducing their job satisfaction and 41 per cent said it is lowering their productivity.

Of the one in four workers working more than five days a week, one-third is working over the government guideline, which states that people should not work more than 48 hours a week. Some 54 per cent said they worked these hours because employers required them to.

Surprisingly Yorkshire, not London's financial district, is the stress capital of the UK. Workers in Yorkshire are most likely to work the longest hours, while those in the North East and East Midlands are less like to suffer from work-related stress than any other region. Royal & SunAlliance's Linda McCormack said: 'The results should be seen as a wake-up call for the nation's employers.'

Source

The Facilities Business