The article deals with the topic of improving the ways of protecting the interests of employees, namely, the problem of selecting the leader based on the informal characteristics, including the psychological features rather than by the administrative instructions. Based on scientific literature the authors give their understanding of “mental load” and "emotional stability". Using experimental data, the authors prove the hypothesis about the leadership as a result of combination of three factors: firstly, the problem-solving by the group; secondly, the group’s composition; and finally, the leader’s personal qualities. The research is based on the theoretical and empirical scientific methods’ use. 208 employees took part in the survey devoted to the assessment of the Trade Union leader’s activity. In conclusion, the authors identified the main components of psychological load and emotional stability of a higher education employee with a socially active status. The researches came to the conclusion that the leader’s fundamental basis includes: personal qualities, tolerance, the resistance to the mental stress effects; the ability to create a favorable socio-psychological climate in the team and apply certain motivational and managerial methods; the leadership abilities; and the ability to communicate and solve conflict situations.