Legal Aspects of Job-Related Stress in Great

¶ … legal aspects of job-related stress in Great Britain, with the view to helping businesses in Great Britain avoid stress claims. While the article addresses issues in Great Britain, it also illuminates another way of looking at stress. The first article looked at it from a personal level; the second from a group level; and this one purely from the company's point-of-view. In considering this article, readers might note its implied relationship to the article by Styhre et. al., because it demonstrates clearly that work-related stress occurs within a larger social unit (the employment setting). The article's main point is that employers should handle claims of stress both sensitively and carefully, especially as they relate to suspension and firing, to avoid lawsuits charging the company with causing psychiatric damage to the individual because of how the company handled the situation.

This article points out various causes of stress, all listed in the article from the American institute of Stress, including difficulty juggling work and life, concerns about workplace violence, harassment and bullying, workloads and discrimination. However, this article looks at what a company does in the face of such situations that might help resolve a problem, make it worse, or give the appearance of making it worse. The article recognizes that stress can cause real psychological injury and gives a compelling example: a childcare worker who was suspended after being accused of child abuse. Her suspension covered a significant (but unspecified) period of time. Eventually she was cleared but not after she had been under a cloud of suspicion for some time. She charged her employer with causing her clinical depression because they failed to investigate the circumstances promptly and effectively. She won her suit.

This sort of situation could be a concern for any childcare worker, health care provider, teacher, or any number of other occupations where the employee has considerable power over the person he or she serves. They are all open to charges of abuse, and while it may be necessary to suspend the individual pending an investigation, those in charge should be prepared to treat the employee with respect and consideration until cleared or proven guilty of the charge. The simple fear of such charges may add to the daily stress of such people. For instance, teachers report being afraid to hug their students or even pat them on the back for fear they will be misconstrued or deliberately distorted.

Part of this article describes in detail the legal intricacies involved in Great Britain. This part of the article would have limited use for people in the United States since laws would differ between the two countries, but demonstrates the complexities of fitting the psychological needs of people into a legal system. In that way, the article suggests the insistence of Styhre et. al., who argued against compartmentalizing issues related to stress. However, it seems likely that in the event of legal action, philosophy would have to be set aside in favor of hard facts.