Unclear job expectation top contributor to stress

Indian employers fared better than their Asia Pacific counterparts in managing employees' work-related stress, according to Staying@Work survey conducted by Towers Watson. Even as Indian employers lead their regional counterparts in developing strategies to manage work-related stress, only 38 per cent identified improving the emotional/mental health of employees as a top priority of their productivity programmes.

The survey highlights that the main sources of stress for employees across the globe are tied to their experience at the workplace. Globally, inadequate staffing is the single most important contributor to work-related stress. The report says flexible working hours is the most common solution among Indian employers to manage employees' stress, followed by organised stress management interventions (for example, workshops and yoga). Interestingly, while 85 per cent of the US employers promote employee assistance programme, only two of every five Indian employers are following suit.