Mental Health in Construction
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
Stress can be shown in a person in different ways and this can include physical symptoms, changes in behaviour and emotions. There are occasions where these signs of stress can develop into health conditions including depression and anxiety, heart disease and irritable bowel syndrome.
Categorised in: Mental Health