During these uncertain times, employees’ stress levels have greatly increased due to the heavy implications of coronavirus. Many employees are looking to their organizations and managers to remedy their stress and gain answers in efforts to find out what’s next. Aside from COVID-19, all of us need to learn how to cope with stress and learn how to reduce it in any work environment. Great managers tend to eliminate stress by creating a healthy and sustainable workplace environment, which is ideal for employees’ morale, the scale of business, and organizational growth.
Usually, the main cause of stress is due to the workload of an employee, juggling multiple assignments, interpersonal relationships, and job security, according to The American Institute of Stress. Constant stress can interfere with employees’ productivity, creativity, openness to collaboration across teams, colleague relationships, productivity levels, and physical and emotional health. Managers should first try to understand what makes their employees happy at work to prevent workplace stress. Our Glassdoor economic research team looked at which workplace factors are the main drivers of overall employee satisfaction on Glassdoor in five countries around the world, the United States, the UK, France, Germany, and Canada — as well as by industry and gender in the United States. They discovered that the three main drivers of employee satisfaction in the United States are culture and values of a company, accounting for 22%; quality of senior leadership is the second strongest predictor, accounting for 21%; and career opportunities are the third strongest predictor, accounting for 19% of the total.
This data tells us that employees are more concerned with the culture and values of the company and senior leadership than they are with compensation and benefits. In today’s uncertain climate, employees are relying on their senior management to be empathetic, transparent, and trustworthy, and all of these qualities and characteristics lead to reduced stress levels among employees. So how can managers minimize employee stress? See our tips below.
Facilitate and encourage transparent conversations among your team members.
As a manager, it’s essential to encourage your team members to be transparent with their feelings, thoughts, and opinions about their workload and organizational shifts. Transparency and open communication foster trust and empathy throughout teams, enabling employees to feel safe, seen, and less stressed.
Foster mindfulness within your team.
Mindfulness is a great meditation and awareness tool that can be used to get your team back on track when it comes to executing personal assignments or team projects. The mindfulness practice encourages team members to stay in the present, allowing them to up their productivity levels, which in turn decreases stress.
Empower employees to take wellness breaks.
As much as being productive is essential, so is taking wellness breaks. During COVID-19, most organizations decided to move to remote work and management, which throws off employees’ regular work schedules and routines. Managers should encourage their team members to take time from their day to exercise indoors or step away from the computer screen.
Recognize your team members’ efforts and provide recognition.
The most outstanding companies know that their employees are the heart and soul of their business. Every fair manager should recognize the efforts of their employees and team members to increase morale and productivity. Employees who feel like they have a positive and personal rapport with their management and senior leadership are more likely to be engaged, feel appreciated, and valued whenever their work gets noticed and praised.