New developments concerning workplace safety training: managing stress arising from work Available to Purchase

Balancing the demands of work and family life becomes more difficult and complex. Every week an estimated 95 million Americans suffer a stressrelated problem and take medication for their aches and pains. There are estimates that as much as 80 per cent of all illness is stress‐related, and 85 per cent of all industrial accidents are linked to personal worker behaviour that includes adaptation to stress. In new data from a study done by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Analysis Group, researchers estimate that depression, which can be triggered by ongoing stress, costs American business $43.7 billion a year. This is as much as heart disease (Mcllwain, 1999). Health studies provide that if the problems are identified early and responded to quickly, most are easily and successfully resolved. With this in mind many employers realise the importance of providing assistance and resources in finding solutions to personal or professional concerns employees might have in order to assist them in maintaining the quality of their lives.