STRESS AND SLOW DOWN

Stress is double edged knife. According to studies if it is with in limits the productivity is increased, if it reaches peak it has negative effect on health and productivity of individual and ultimately the companies will suffer its productivity. If it is taken care of by exercise and meditation stress can be controlled but unfortunately many people resort towards smoking and alcohol and go to pubs and discos. The recent slow down has a ramification on employees stress level because of fear of pink slips, overload of work, financial problems and not coping up with office and house problems.
A national-level Corporate Wellness survey, conducted by the Apollo Hospitals group in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), has revealed that the slowdown-induced stress levels have hit 50.52 per cent of the employees. The sample survey is not a small one. As many as 2.29 lakh employees across 581 corporates, spanning both manufacturing and services sectors, in about 32 cities and towns were covered in the survey for 2008-09. Apollo hospital had done a similar study a decade ago, covering 100 corporates and 15,000 executives in the six metros.
While ‘overall stress’ level had gone up to 50.52 per cent from 39 per cent in 1998-99, work stress shot up to 20.19 per cent (3.40 per cent), home stress to 19.33 per cent (1.62 per cent) and daily pressures from 8.84 per cent to 16.71 per cent.
The survey found that 48.46 per cent of all the employees were ‘physically unfit’ (which reflected their inability to carry out certain physical activities they were expected to do in their age group).Though alarming still, the figure marked an improvement over the 54.80 per cent registered in the earlier study. Those in the ‘overweight’ category came down to 32.52 per cent from 70.98 per cent. In 2008-09, about 41 per cent of employees admitted that they did not do any physical exercise

“The good news is that there is a marked increase in physical fitness. But the bad news is that stress levels have gone up to alarming levels,” Prof Adrian Kennedy of Lifetime Wellness Rx International Ltd, an Apollo Hospitals initiative, “The stress levels have gone up as a result of the global slowdown and business competitiveness. The methods of relaxation too are changing more in favor of avenues like pubs,” he said.
The response from the corporate world is lukewarm. About 70 per cent of organisations do not provide for wellness facilities. Only 30 per cent offer medical checks to their staff,” Prof Kennedy

What are answers?
Companies should provide fitness facilities to the staff, so that they can relax, yoga and meditation and physical exercise is most important.
There should be time gap for relaxation.
Companies should not overburden the staff with work.
People should be motivated and counseling should be down.
In the world of competition, people should prepare for “rainy days” so that they can not over stress their financial limitations.
Save money for difficult days.
Listen spiritual discourses.