The Trade Union Congress (TUC) have produced a guide for safety representatives on how to use the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Management Standards on tackling stress at work.

This guide is to help union safety reps encourage their employer to work with them to implement the HSE standards. The standards were launched in 2004 following extensive development and piloting. They are an effective tool to assist organisations to identify the causes of workplace stress and implement practical solutions to manage the risks. They are now the main standard in use in the UK.

HSE commissioned research indicates that about half a million people in the UK experience work-related stress at a level they believe is making them ill. It also shows that work-related stress costs society about £3.7 billion every year.

In 2004, a TUC survey revealed that 58% of the 5,800 safety reps who responded to the survey said that stress was the main hazard of concern to workers.

• Find the guide on the TUC site