2. Risk assessments
There are 2 main pieces of health and safety law which cover work-related stress:
- the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 – this puts a 'duty of care' on employers to protect their employees from the risk of stress at work
- the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 – this requires all employers to make a 'suitable and sufficient assessment' of the risks to the health and safety of their employees at work
This means that by law employers must:
- identify any risks to their employees' health, for example by carrying out a risk assessment
- take steps to prevent or reduce work-related stress
Employers must also make sure they're following the law on working time rules (Working Time Regulations 1998). This is because working long hours without regular breaks can be a cause of work-related stress.
Carrying out risk assessments
By law, employers must carry out a risk assessment to protect their employees from stress at work.
The law applies to anyone with the legal status of employee.
Someone is not likely to be an employee if they're:
- a casual worker
- on a zero-hours contract
Employers should work with their employees to:
- identify the risks of stress
- decide how to remove or reduce the risks
- agree what steps to take
- make any changes to avoid or reduce risks
- regularly review the plan
Managers should carry out risk assessments on a regular basis.
If an employee tells them they are experiencing work-related stress, they should do an individual risk assessment.
Using tools can help managers work with their employees to identify the risks of stress. For example, the Talking Toolkit from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
This can help them to understand:
- what's causing work-related stress or any potential issues
- what they can do to tackle the causes
When a risk assessment needs to be in writing
If an organisation employs 5 or more employees, they must do a written risk assessment.
If an organisation has 4 or less people, they do not have to do a written assessment. But putting it in writing means:
- everyone knows what they've agreed to do to reduce the risks
- the employer is taking their duty to consider stress risks seriously
Download a risk assessment template from the Health and Safety Executive
If an employee is unhappy with how a risk assessment was handled
If an employee is not happy with how a stress risk assessment was handled, they can raise this with their employer. It's usually best to raise the problem informally first by talking to their employer.
If that does not resolve the issue they can raise a grievance. This is where they make a formal complaint to their employer.
For any questions about raising a problem, contact the Acas helpline.
Agency workers
The law on stress risk assessments is likely to also apply to agency workers.
Before offering someone an assignment, an agency has a duty to find out:
- what risks there are
- what steps an employer is taking to reduce the risks
The employer should also include agency workers in their stress risk assessment process.