22-08-2007
Keep SME employees stress-free
Employees who take sick leave due to stress related illness have a big financial impact on their employer's business.
According to comments made by Ray Allger, a representative from the UK-based Health and Safety Commission, SMEs may face a significant financial impact in covering the cost of stress-related sick leave.
Employees at smaller companies tend to be under more stress than those at larger companies, because more is expected of them in order to ensure the business grows. This is turn means that there is a greater incidence of sick leave at small companies.
"If somebody is off due to work related stress they can be off for quite a long time and it can end up costing the small business quite a lot of money," said Mr Allger.
"Health and safety of staff is important because [SMEs] don't have the availability of cover that larger organisations have," he added.
Indeed, Mr Allger noted that SMEs can also face increased costs should there be a need to employ and train a temporary member of staff to cover the absent employee.
All employers should ensure that they have employer's liability insurance to cover the business against any compensation claims. It is a legal requirement and is not optional. Certain businesses might also benefit from Business Interruption Insurance.
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