Workplace Stress: Are You Doing Enough to Protect Your Employees?

Stress at work isn’t always loud. It doesn’t always show up as sickness absence or open complaints. Often, it’s subtle - disengaged employees, rising turnover, lower productivity, and quiet burnout. But employers have both a legal and moral responsibility to act before stress becomes a bigger issue.

Under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, employers must assess and control risks to employee health, including work-related stress. Employers are expected to carry out a stress risk assessment just like they would for any other workplace hazard. This process helps you:

• Identify areas where pressure or demands may be too high

• Evaluate whether roles, responsibilities, or management support are clear and fair

• Understand if certain teams or demographics (e.g. younger staff) are more vulnerable

• Put practical steps in place to reduce stressors and support staff

For employers with greater than five employees, the significant findings of the assessment should be logged alongside those who are at particularly at risk.

If you fail to act, the risk isn’t just burnout, it could lead to increased turnover, performance dips, and even legal claims tied to mental health discrimination or breach of duty of care.

So, what can businesses do in practice to reduce workplace stress?

1. Make time for listening - Open-door policies only work if leaders are genuinely accessible and responsive. Encourage regular one-to-ones, team check-ins, and feedback loops that go beyond performance. Sometimes simply being heard can reduce stress and reveal early warning signs.

2. Review workloads and role clarity - Overwhelm often stems from unmanageable workloads or poorly defined responsibilities. Regularly review how work is distributed, whether deadlines are realistic, and whether employees understand what’s expected of them. Ambiguity is a breeding ground for stress.

3. Equip managers to spot the signs - Managers are your first line of defence. Training them to recognise stress, hold supportive conversations, and signpost resources makes a huge difference. Stress isn’t always about “coping”, sometimes, it’s about lack of support.

4. Build flexibility into the culture - Whether it’s hybrid working, adjusted hours, or more autonomy over how tasks are done, flexibility can reduce daily pressure and improve wellbeing, especially for those with caring responsibilities.

5. Don't wait for a problem - do a risk assessment! Under health and safety law, employers must assess risks to mental health just as they do for physical safety. A stress risk assessment isn’t about box-ticking, it’s a proactive way to find pressure points in your workplace and respond before issues escalate.

A one-size-fits-all wellbeing strategy is no longer enough. Employees often expect more flexibility, openness, and proactive mental health support. Understanding these nuances is crucial, and your HR policies and management training should reflect them.

Need help conducting a stress risk assessment or reshaping your wellbeing strategy? Dodds Consultancy Group helps employers navigate compliance while building healthier, more productive workplaces. Let’s talk about building a workplace where your people can truly thrive.