Brits face unmanageable stress due to excessive workload
One in three Brits (32 per cent) working from home have been putting in longer hours since the start of Covid-19, creating ‘unmanageable stress’, according to health service company Cigna Europe
Lack of an office routine and extra time from non-commuting have been cited as the main reasons for the excessive workload, as the research reveals almost three quarters (71 per cent) of the nation are currently stressed, with 12 per cent of this unmanageable.
Close the gap
Dr Peter Mills, Associate Medical Director at Cigna Europe, said: “It is essential for employers to focus on closing the gap between what employees expect in terms of their overall Whole Health and what they actually receive now that we are starting to return to the office. Whole Health extends beyond the typical provisions of physical and mental health and includes everything that makes up the employee's world: family, friends, work-life balance, access to care, finances and home environment. Difficulty in any one of these areas can have an immediate knock-on effect on a person's Whole Health.”
Prior to the pandemic, well-being policies were often tactical and reactionary and with the additional pressures the pandemic has brought, they have not had the desired impact.
Arjan Toor, CEO, Cigna Europe, said: “It’s vital for us to deliver healthcare innovations that connect our customers and our employees with the best care possible. As a health service company, we consider it our responsibility to help bridge the gap between employee needs and the health support provided, and that change starts from within our own company.”
To tackle these issues head on, the company recently launched a new Whole Health initiative to support UK employees and a new science-based voice detector stress tool Cigna StressWaves Test, designed to reveal how stressed users are.