Stress in the Workplace: a Challenge for Swiss Companies

According to the latest data from Travail.Suisse's Working Conditions Barometer 2022 (Baromètre Conditions de travail 2022), 43% of the country's workers feel stressed, marking a significant increase of 37.8% since 2016. The rate of emotional exhaustion, which is an indicator of an increased risk of burn-out and poorer health, even reaches an alarming 30% in 2022, a figure never reached before.

Three Quarters of Stressed People Don't Know How to Manage their Stress

The Swiss Health Survey 2017 : Work and Health (Enquête suisse sur la santé 2017: travail et santé) by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), meanwhile, notes that the increasing trend of workers often or always feeling stress in their work is most marked among young people under 30 and those aged between 30 and 49. Among those who say they are often or always stressed, three quarters admit that they are unable to manage their stress.

A Clear Impact on Employee Health

Psychosocial risks linked to work organization are closely associated with stress at work, and can have a negative impact on employee health. According to Promotion Santé Suisse’s Job Stress Index, 28.2% of working people are in the critical health stress zone in 2022. What's more, people experiencing emotional exhaustion at work are twice as likely to report average or poor general health compared to those who do not, as well as three times as likely to report average or high psychological distress, and even six times as likely to report moderate to severe depression, according to the FSO.

7.6 Billion Francs a Year in Lost Productivity due to Stress

As well as having a significant impact on health, stress at work also influences employee productivity. A chronically stressed employee is more likely to be tired or burnt out, to fall ill and be either less productive or absent altogether. Workers suffering from emotional exhaustion and burn-out lead to a drop in productivity, either through absenteeism or presenteeism, which represents around 14.9% of working time on average. According to Promotion Santé Suisse, absenteeism due to stress results in an average of a 6.5-day absence per year per employee, while stress at work specifically costs companies around 7.6 billion Swiss francs per year in lost productivity !

Minimizing Constraints and Developing Individual Resources

These figures highlight the imperative need to tackle the sources of stress and promote work environments conducive to employees' mental and physical health.

Swiss companies not only need to take structural measures to prevent and minimize chronic stress at work, but also to support employees in their stress management in order to maintain employee commitment and competitiveness in the marketplace.

It is therefore crucial to minimize contextual constraints on employees, while promoting their own resources. In addition to fundamental measures to optimize organizational structures, working practices, priority management and ergonomics at work amongst others, it is also essential to invest in well-being and skills development.

The development and reinforcement of soft skills play an essential role in employees' ability to handle stressful situations and collaborate constructively with colleagues. Adaptability, communication and time management skills, a positive attitude and self-confidence are just some of the elements required.

In this respect, sophrology is a valuable resource for promoting well-being, stress management and talent development in the workplace.