The “Management Standards” for stress in large organizations

Abstract

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -In Great Britain, the '"Management Standards" were launched in 2004 and formally published in 2007 by the Health and Safety Executive to help organizations manage work-related stress. The purpose of this paper is to examine how these Standards are translated into organizational practice. Design/methodology/approach -The research uses case studies carried out in five large organizations drawn from the public and private sectors in Great Britain. Findings -Senior management commitment and worker participation are key to managing workrelated stress and are commonly reported across organizations, although to variable form and depth. The solution chosen to identify stress issues is a short assessment of all staff via annual staff surveys, coupled with in-depth assessments of groups at risk. Common practice also includes combining individual and organizational interventions. One significant challenge emerges as the translation from identified stress issues to focussed interventions and their evaluation.Research limitations/implications -The implementation processes outlined in this study are by no means exhaustive due to the small sample size but are consistent with previous research. Practical implications -The findings suggest that the HSE Management Standards approach for dealing with stress issues is do-able. Refining the information in the HSE guidance on implementing and evaluating interventions and broadening the current focus on organization-level interventions is needed. Originality/value -Publication of case studies of the implementation of the Management Standards has been limited. This paper illustrates the efforts made by large organizations to integrate national guidance on stress and this could be used for guiding and improving stress management in similar work settings.

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