LRD guides and handbook October 2016

Stress and mental health at work - a guide for trade union reps

Chapter 1

HSE guidance on the “primary sources” of stress at work

[ch 1: page 20]

The HSE Management Standards cover six key areas of work design that, if not properly managed, are associated with poor health and well-being, lower productivity and increased sickness absence. They cover “the primary sources” of stress at work:

• the demands of the job;

• control over work;

• the support from managers and colleagues;

• relationships at work;

• role in the organisation; and

• change and how it is managed.

These Management Standards are the basis of the HSE’s approach to tackling stress and are examined in detail in Chapter 4.