Chapter 11 Stress and Safety Major Topics Workplace stress

1
Chapter 11

• Stress and Safety

2
Major Topics

• Workplace stress
• Sources of workplace stress
• Measurement of workplace stress
• Improving safety by reducing workplace stress
• Stress in safety managers
• Stress and workers compensation

3
Stress

• Stress is defined as the reaction of a human body
  to a threatening situation.

4
Workplace Stress

• Job stress is the harmful physical and emotional
  response that occurs when the requirements of the
  job do not match the capabilities, resources or
  needs of the worker.
• Corporations see stress as an individual problem
  based on the employees lifestyle, psychological
  makeup, and personality.
• Unions see stress as excessive demands, poor
  supervision, or conflicting demands.
• Almost 15 of occupational disease claims are
  stress related.

5
Sources of Workplace Stress

• May involve physical working conditions, work
  overload, role ambiguity, lack of feedback,
  personality, personal and family problems, or
  role conflict. Other sources
• Task Complexity too many demands may cause a
  feeling of inadequacy and result in emotional
  stress. Repetitive and monotonous work may lack
  complexity and worker becomes stressed by boredom
  and dissatisfaction.
• Control less stress when worker participates in
  determining work routine, schedule, and selection
  of tasks. Electronic monitored workers suffer
  greater health problems than those who are not.
• A feeling of responsibility (to family or general
  public) may cause a worker to feel that the
  options to take employment risks are limited
  trapped in the job. e.g. Air traffic
  controllers.
• Job Security A worker who believes his job is at
  risk will experience anxiety. Availability of
  other jobs and feeling that ones professional
  skills are needed reduces stress related to job
  security.
• An organizational culture feeling left out, out
  of the loop, and ill-informed. Organizations need
  to communicate frequently with all employees.

6
Lack of Job Autonomy May Cause Workplace Stress

• Less stress when worker participates in
  determining work routine, schedule, and selection
  of tasks.
• A manager can help employees realize their full
  potential by helping them match their career
  goals with the companys goals and giving them
  more control over their jobs.

7
Five Categories of Human Reaction to Workplace
Stress

• Subjective or emotional anxiety, aggression,
  guilt.
• Behavioral being prone to accidents, trembling.
• Cognitive inability to concentrate or make
  decisions.
• Physiological increased heart rate and blood
  pressure.
• Organizational absenteeism and poor productivity.

8
Relationship between Psychosomatic Reactions to
Workplace Stress and Physiological Illness

• The human response to workplace stress can be
  compared to a rubber band being stretched. As the
  stress continues to be applied, the rubber band
  stretches until a limit is reached when the
  rubber band breaks.
• For humans, various physiological and
  psychological changes are observed with the
  repetition of stress. Until the limit is reached
  the harmful effects can be reversed. With an
  increase in intensity or duration of the stress
  beyond the individuals limit the effects on the
  human become pathological.

9
Autoimmune Diseases and Workplace Stress
Relationship

• When the body fails to adapt to continued stress
  autoimmune disorders may begin (immune system
  breaks down).
• The tendency to develop specific stress related
  disease may be partially predetermined by
  heredity, personal habits such as smoking, and
  personality.

10
Three stages of Human Reaction to Stress

• Stage of Alarm characterized by sweating and
  increased heart rate.
• Stage of Resistance alarm symptoms dissipate,
  and body develops adaptation to stress.
• Stage of exhaustion Body fails to adapt to
  continuous stress. Psychosomatic diseases such as
  gastric ulcers, colitis, rashes, and autoimmune
  disorders may begin during this stage. The stress
  related disease may be determined by heredity,
  personal habits such as smoking and personality.

11
Three ways in which mental workload can be
measured

• Subjective ratings The workers are asked to rate
  their perceived level of workload. The perceived
  workload is viewed as a direct reflection of
  workplace stress.
• Behavioral time sharing require the simultaneous
  performance of two tasks one task is more
  important (primary task). The decrease in
  performance of the second task is considered an
  index of workload.
• Psychophysiological technique require
  simultaneous measurement of heart rate and brain
  waves which are then interpreted as indexes of
  mental workload and workplace stress.

12
Efforts to rid the workplace of all causes of
workplace stress

• Adverse effects of stress on health may be
  considered to be a maladaptation of humans to
  stress.
• So we need to do away with stress (unlikely),
  avoid all stressful situations (unequally
  unlikely), learn to adapt to being sick
  (undesirable), or learn to adapt to workplace
  stress( the optimal choice).

13
Data provided by psychological questionnaires and
bias of data

• Psychological questionnaires evaluate workers
  emotions about their jobs. Workers may be asked
  about their job satisfaction, workload, pace,
  opportunities for advancement, management style,
  and organizational climate.
• Psychological questionnaires are another form of
  subjective rating and are also subject to state
  dependent (feel good/bad the day you fill out the
  form) bias of the data.

14
How shift work causes workplace stress and ways
of minimization

• Shift work requires rotating between two or three
  different starting times which may vary by eight
  hours or more. The body perceives a change in
  work shift as being stressful.
• To reduce stress associated with shift work
  exercise regularly improves sleep and relieves
  pent up stress avoid caffeine, alcohol or other
  drugs that can affect sleep food supplement
  melatonin or other natural sleep inducers should
  be used rather than sleeping pills that contain
  synthetic chemicals that may cause stress.

15
Reducing workplace stress by managers

• Managers can help design jobs in ways that lead
  to worker satisfaction thereby lessening
  workplace stress.
• Physical stress can be reduced by improving the
  work environment and establishing a sound safety
  and health program.
• Avoid jobs that do not make use of workers
  knowledge and initiative.

16
Reducing workplace stress by management

• Mental health benefits are provided in employee
  health insurance coverage.
• Employer has formal employee communication
  program
• Workers have current, accurate, and clear job
  descriptions.
• Management and employees talk openly with one
  another.
• Employees are free to talk to each other during
  work.
• Employer offers exercise and other stress
  reduction classes.
• Employers are recognized and rewarded for their
  contributions.
• Work rules are published and are the same for
  everyone.
• Child care programs are available.
• Employees can work flexible hours.

17
How individuals can reduce workplace stress

• Individuals can respond to a stressful workload
  by delegating responsibility instead of carrying
  the entire load.
• Relaxation techniques can also help reduce the
  effects of stress meditation, music and
  exercise.

18
Summary

• Stress is the harmful physical and emotional
  response that occurs when the requirements of the
  job do not match the capabilities, resources, or
  needs of the worker.
• Sources of workplace stress include environmental
  conditions, work overload, role ambiguity,
  personal and family problems, and role conflict.
• Until an individuals limit is reached, the
  effects of stress may be reversed.
• Stages of human reaction to stress are alarm,
  resistance, and exhaustion.
• Managers can reduce workplace stress by reducing
  role ambiguity and increasing feedback and job
  autonomy.
• Individuals can respond to a stressful workload
  by delegating responsibility and learning how to
  relax to include meditation, music, and/or
  exercise.

19
Home work

• Do questions 2, 3, 10, and 13 on pages 242-243.
• 2. How is workplace stress different from general
  stress?
• 3. List 5 sources of workplace stress and give an
  on the job example for each source.
• 10. Discuss the efforts to rid the workplace of
  all causes of workplace stress.
• 13. Give specific steps that can be taken by
  managers to help reduce workplace stress.