Workplace Stress Infographic: Is your Bad Boss killing you?

Nearly half of all workers say they have a bad boss and the stress they experience over a poor relationship with their boss is taking up more than just time at work, but also time away from work. Employees are spending over six hours on weekends worrying about their boss, add that in to the thirteen hours they spend fretting and stressing during the week they have nearly spent one complete day out of the whole week worrying about their boss. A poor relationship with a boss who is a challenge to work with has an ongoing negative impact on the employees work and family life which can lead to mental and physical health problems.

But can all of the blame truly lay with a bad boss? Bad bosses aren’t always bad people. Maybe they lack the leadership skills or lack effective communication skills and make working with them a challenge even though they are capable in their position to do the job. Differing styles of work can be a major factor when there is a problem with a boss. Since it is impossible to control the boss’s decisions and actions, finding alternate ways to respond to them may be a way to relieve some friction. It may be beneficial to have business skills training to look at alternative ways to handle situations.

Understanding the composition of a bad boss and the impact on employee health from working with them is explained in the infographic:

• Bad bosses show a strong likeness to small children and seem commonly selfish and stubborn. They may communicate poorly, be pushy or indecisive. • The stress on an employee can be physical and mental leading to health problems, home disruption and cost employees and employers money in medical costs and lost workdays. • Changing responses with an unreasonable boss is a better alternative than ongoing negative impact on health.

There are many bad bosses in the workplace and employee wellness needs to be considered. Human Resources are essential in making sure no harassment issues or discrimination is occurring and firing training videos can help as well. It’s important to not let the stress of having to deal with a bad boss interrupt more than your workday or your life.