Young workers are 40% more likely than older employees to take sick leave due to stress, according to a new survey from financial services and pension provider Friends Life, which highlights the need for stress prevention.
According to the survey, which interviewed 2,000 UK workers, around half of Britons believe they have become more stressed since the beginning of the global economic crisis in 2008. The likelihood of employees taking time off because of anxiety is tightly linked to their age, the survey finds. Young people are most inclined to call in sick because of stress, with more than two-thirds of 18-to-24-year-olds admitting to doing so in the last year. The proportion drops to 54% among 25-to-34-year-old workers, 47% of 35-to-44-year-olds and 43% of employees aged 45 to 55.
Work emerges as a key stress factor, along with money and relationships, Friends Life says.
Psychologists believe that young workers may feel more stressed than the older generation because they have to meet higher expectations.
David Williams, director of group protection at Friends Life, comments that the number of young people affected by anxiety is alarming. There is a lot of work to be done in recognising the harmful effect of stress in the workplace on individual performance and business productivity, he adds.
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