Employee stress is a business risk—not just an HR issue. That’s the central message from a recent Harvard Business Review article.
Here’s what stood out to me in particular:
• High-stress employees take eight times more sick leave and are four times more disengaged.
• They file 2.5× more health claims and are 11× more likely to make compliance errors.
• Across a workforce of 1,000, chronic stress can cost around $5.3 million annually—covering absenteeism, turnover, presenteeism and health claims.
What’s especially striking is how rarely organizations treat stress as a measurable business variable. Many invest in wellness perks, but those won’t move the needle if the root causes, like unmanageable workloads or lack of psychological safety, go unaddressed.
There’s a clear call to action: Treat stress like any other business risk.
For HR and leadership teams, that means:
• Track stress levels over time using structured surveys
• Cross-reference stress data with performance, compliance and turnover metrics
• Launch targeted interventions—more than perks, focus on workload balance, manager support and psychological safety
This isn’t about HR alone. Stress impacts every layer of the organisation—from operations to reputation and financial performance.
If leaders tackle stress strategically and with measurement, they can build healthier, more resilient organisations.
Photo Credit: Aflac
#EmployeeWellbeing #WorkplaceStress #HBR