Stress is soaring: How employers can protect their people and their business

Recent research highlighted by the Trade Union Congress (TUC) suggests unprecedented levels of workplace stress in the UK and a 2025 review by former John Lewis boss, Sir Charlie Mayfield, found sickness costs employers £85 billion a year through issues including lost productivity and sick pay, with the rise in sickness being driven by a “surge” in mental health issues. Health and Safety Executive (HSE) statistics show that 22 million working days were lost because of stress between 2024 – 2025.

Stress was rated as a top concern in all sectors in every region and particularly in the education, health and local government sectors. As a result, stress has been labelled a key issue for union representatives to address with more workers than ever before appearing to suffer from either work-related stress, anxiety or depression. One in four young people have mental health conditions according to an NHS survey. One leading global expert, Professor Francesca Happé, has suggested that we may have reached a point where more people identify themselves as neurodivergent than neurotypical.

One potential reason highlighted by the TUC for the issue was the current economic climate and a failure of employers to mitigate certain risks and provide adequate support to staff.

Against this backdrop, employers are under increasing pressure not only to recognise the scale of the issue but to take meaningful steps to manage it. We explore what employers can do to better support their workforce, create healthier working environments, and reduce the likelihood of costly disputes or regulatory scrutiny.

What is workplace stress?

Stress is defined by the HSE as a “diverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them”. Of course, stress can affect all areas of life, however in the working environment it can be particularly damaging if not properly managed. Some people can benefit from a certain amount of work-related stress to keep them motivated, however if stress is not properly managed it can lead to medically recognised conditions such as anxiety and depression, and even physical illnesses that cause digestive problems, skin conditions and neck pain.

Various factors can lead to stress at work, including a lack of support or management, change within an organisation or conflicting demands. Stress can also often build where workers feel they don’t have the proper channels of communication available to raise or escalate their work-related difficulties. It should also be noted that life events outside of work, such as a divorce or a death in the family can also lead to additional stress at work. This is because an employee’s productivity can be affected by their personal mood. Outside factors can therefore cause a knock-on effect and build the pressure on their existing workload.

Implications of stress in the workplace

Due to the impact of stress damaging the mental and physical wellbeing of staff, it will often lead to extended periods of time off work, which exacerbates the issue. Members of the workforce could feel additional pressure or guilt from being signed off work and depending on employers’ absence management policies, there could be additional financial troubles that result from being on statutory sick pay.

There were 800,000 more people out of work in 2025 than in 2019 due to health conditions according to a recent review. Without intervention, another 600,000 people could leave work due to health reasons by the end of the decade.

Further to the financial impacts of lost productivity and increased sick pay, employers are seeing a rise in discrimination claims in the Employment Tribunal and personal injury claims linked to stress related conditions which are allegedly brought on by conditions within workplaces. While the law does not allow claims for “feeling stressed” in the everyday sense, if an employee can show that conditions at work caused or contributed to a recognised psychiatric injury, for example, clinical depression, anxiety disorder or post-traumatic stress, then courts are more prepared to award compensation.

Regulatory scrutiny is also on the rise. The HSE, as part of their remit to protect workers and promote a culture of health and safety within workplaces, frequently engage in targeted campaigns to combat certain trends or issues. One such example, launched in 2024, is their Working Minds campaign, which is intended to help employers take proactive steps to understand pressures placed upon employees, and to take suitable action based upon their findings. Employers must assess and manage the risks of work-related stress in the same way as other health and safety risks; under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, employers must assess risks and take reasonably practicable steps to prevent harm. This includes harm from stress. HSE campaigns are frequently accompanied by programmes of targeted inspections, whereby certain workplaces or industries may find themselves subject of spot inspections by the HSE’s Inspectors.

Is stress a disability?

There is also the potential that stress can lead to anxiety or depression which can all be viewed as disabilities in terms of the Equality Act 2010 (the Act). A medical diagnosis doesn’t equal disability under the Act. A lack of diagnosis doesn’t rule out disability. What matters is whether the legal definition of disability is met.

To be classed as a disability, it only needs to be established that:

• there is physical or mental impairment
• that this has a substantial adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities
• that the effect is long term (lasted at least 12 months, likely to be 12 months or likely to last for the rest of the person’s life)

Once a member of staff is classified as “disabled”, they have additional safeguards due to having a protected characteristic in terms of the Act. For example, this could lead to employers having to accommodate “reasonable adjustments” for that member of staff.

Reasonable adjustments for work-related stress

In terms of work-related stress, a reasonable adjustment could be as simple as allowing an employee to work from home for a few days a week or allocating them an additional break. Where an employee suffers from severe anxiety or depression, they may also be liable to miss work more often and so they may need to have their triggers for the absence management policy altered to avoid disability-related absences leading to unfair and discriminatory disciplinary action. And even in some circumstances, disabled employees suffering stress might need to “trump” non-disabled employees to get a job when they can no longer perform their own role. What is reasonable depends on the circumstances of each case.

While an employer has a legal duty to make ‘reasonable adjustments’, there may be times when suggested changes to policies or steps to take are unreasonable and an employer can lawfully refuse to make them. The duty is only to take such steps as it is reasonable to have to take to avoid the disadvantage.

A failure to implement reasonable adjustments could lead to employers and even employees facing a variety of claims depending on the situation. These include a failure to make reasonable adjustments, discrimination arising from disability, indirect disability discrimination, and harassment. This could be especially costly as compensation is uncapped for claims of discrimination and can include for injury to feelings and psychiatric injury.

How Employment Tribunals treat workplace stress

A  fairly recent tribunal case in Manchester saw the claimant succeed in their claim of unfair dismissal and disability discrimination.

The claimant had a history of stress, anxiety and depression and while working on a project with colleagues they suggested other colleagues were not pulling their weight. As a result, the claimant was met with complaints of bullying. They were dismissed for gross misconduct following an investigation of their behaviour towards other members of staff.

Their claim for unfair dismissal was successful as the claimant was dismissed because of behaviour that was linked to their disability. Ultimately, the employer was found not to have provided proper support to the employee and hadn’t carried out a thorough enough investigation into their mental health, its impact on the behaviour at issue and what could help avoid it. It was viewed that if the employee had been provided with proper support, the employee’s conduct could have been avoided.

As a result, we can see that judges expect a proactive approach by employers to manage employees with stress carefully and not jump to conclusions of guilt. Even conduct that could be perceived to be gross misconduct and which would normally warrant dismissal under disciplinary procedures may have to be disregarded as such where there is a health condition at play.

What can employers do to help tackle workplace stress?

Stress affects people differently so avoid making assumptions.

Once a staff-member has raised a health issue, has asked for adjustments to be made, is having difficulty with any part of their job, or has been absent for a certain period with stress, it could be a good idea to discuss the potential of an occupational health report with the member of staff. This would allow the opportunity to get medical advice on their condition, and it may offer some suggestion of how they can be supported to reduce their levels of stress, anxiety or depression. The member of staff doesn’t have to consent to the referral to occupational health, but it will often be in their interest to do so. Generally, employers should engage proactively with staff who are off on long term sick to discuss ways to support them back to work through the combination of medical advice.

Poor communication and management are often cited as key drivers for work-related stress, having regular meetings where staff can raise personal issues is often a good way to reduce stress among the workforce.  Regular 1-2-1 meetings with a line manager for instance could be a valuable way to approach this.

Further, employers can look to tackle the issue of work-related stress by having strong policies in place that look to provide support. Workplace policies that encourage regular breaks from a desk, taking annual leave in regular intervals and sharing the workload among colleagues can all help to reduce workplace stress. Employers can also implement regular stress risk assessments to monitor the condition of staff. This can also help employers to demonstrate a more proactive approach to stress management in the workplace. Employers should also be aware that wider scrutiny around workplace harassment is set to increase under the Employment Rights Act 2025. From October 2026, employers may be liable if they fail to take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment of employees by third parties.

More benefits such as stress management courses, subsidised gym memberships, yoga and team-bonding activities can also be a great reducer of stress and depression.

How we can help with workplace stress queries

James Siwela, or your usual contact in our Employment, Immigration and Pensions Team are well placed to assist with reviewing policies or advising on matters relating to work-related stress. Our industry leading Health and Safety Team, led by Julia McDonald and Calum Sweeney, can help organisations mitigate the risk of employee claims, understand their regulatory obligations in order to minimise HSE scrutiny and – where organisations do find themselves subject of HSE inspections and/or claims by employees – provide thorough advice and robust representation.