Weak or ineffective management which leaves employees feeling they don’t have a sense of direction or over-management, which can leave employees feeling undervalued affects their self-esteem and efficiency, Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode has said.
Besides, failure to keep employees informed about significant changes to the organisation causes them stress and uncertainty about their future.
Ambode who spoke at the Training facilitated by Human Capital Management and Solution Limited in Lagos and tagged, “Time and Stress Management Workshop”, said a stress free workplace will boost workers efficiency.
The Governor, represented by the Commissioner, Lagos State Ministry of Establishments, Training and Pensions Dr. Akintola, Benson stated that the senior officers of the Lagos State Civil Service are being trained on how to make the civil service as less stressful as possible for civil servants.
He listed other common causes of stress in the workplace as multiple reporting lines for employees, with each manager asking for their work to be prioritised, poor physical working environment, excessively high workloads with insufficient workloads, lack of control over work activities, difficulty settling into a new promotion, both in terms of meeting the new role’s requirements and adapting to possible changes in relationships with colleagues.
He said concerns about job security, lack of career opportunities, or level of pay, bullying or harassment among others can also cause stress for employees.
He said: “The State has since discovered that effectiveness in its Civil Service goes far beyond the acquisition of knowledge and job-related skills. The training is aimed at increasing knowledge and on-the-job skills for civil servants and enable them to live well-rounded lives and cope with a number of factors that are often over-looked in the quest for organisational efficiency.
“Two of such factors are time management and stress management. In today’s 24-hour, round-the-clock work engagement culture, there is a critical need to help officers of the State Civil Service learn the mechanisms for coping with the demands on the management of time and the consequential stress.
“It is important to recognise the common causes of stress at work so that you can take steps to reduce stress levels where possible. Workplace stress can be caused by a number of factors from heavy workloads and over-promotion to bullying and blame culture”, he added.
