Work Related Stress

Work related stress and/or bullying can affect anyone, whether you are a chief executive, international sports star, bus driver or shelf stacker.  A person suffering from stress or bullying in the work place will often dread going into work and work related stress will often spill over into the person’s personal life affecting relationships with family and friends.

According to a “Labour Force Survey” carried out by the Government’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in 2010/11 there were approximately 400,000 reported cases of work related stress in the UK.  Health, education, public administration and social work were the sectors that were identified as those most frequently reporting this issue but from our experience it is clear that it can affect a wide range of people in a wide range of jobs.

The fact is that all employers are required to take reasonable measures to protect their employees from suffering from stress and if they have failed to do so then a person may be entitled to claim compensation.

This is a challenging area of the law as to succeed an employee needs to prove that his or her employer knew or should have known that they were at risk of suffering an injury albeit a psychological injury.  A good example of where this was shown is the landmark case of Walker v Northumberland County Council where Mr Walker suffered two nervous breakdowns as a result of the stress at work.  After the first breakdown his employers were found to have been aware of the risk to his mental heath and by failing to put in place measures to support and protect him they were liable to compensate him for the second breakdown.

If you are suffering from stress or bulling at work it is important that you make your employers aware of the problem.  Once you have done this they must then investigate and do what they can to address the problem and where possible provide help and support.

The reality is that if you are under pressure at work and perhaps feeling a little overwhelmed on occasion, then you may not have a valid claim for work related stress, but if that pressure is regular, constant and is related to your work or working environment then you may have a valid claim.

Here at Wolferstans we can offer specialist advice from a team of lawyers who have many years experience in dealing with this type of claim.  We understand that it can often be difficult to discuss these issues and even address the fact that you have been a victim of workplace stress or bullying. We offer a confidential and compassionate approach to help you and to advise you on your options.

If you or someone you know has suffered from work related stress or bullying please do not hesitate to contact Jill Burrows of Wolferstans Solicitors for a free no obligation discussion on 01752 292279 or e-mail us on jburrows@wolferstans.com.