MEMORANDUM

TO: Greg Busch, Interim Chief Risk Officer (CRO) UA State Wide
FROM: Danielle M. Dewey, Project Manager
SUBJECT: Why We Need a Strategy for Health and Wellbeing, Tools and Checklists for
Addressing Stress in the Workplace
DATE: December 11, 2016
CC: Brad Gilbreath, Ph.D.

As part of the upcoming 2017 Risk Management Effectiveness Initiative a request was
put out for volunteers to investigate and inform the department of Environmental Health, Safety,
and Risk Management with weekly memos. This is the seventh in a series. In the preceding week
I have spent time on the subjects of Why We Need a Strategy for Health and Wellbeing; and
Tools and Checklists for Addressing Stress in the Workplace. We have a stake in the success of
our organizations and organizations should note that they have a stake in our wellbeing as well.
(Gilbreath, Video: Introduction to Why We Need a Strategy for Health and Wellbeing). As I
discussed in my blog, I personally have experience in both positive and negative psychosocial
work environments. Organizations need to have a strategy for employee health and wellbeing if
they want to be an organization with an optimally productive workforce. (Dewey, Contribution
13, 2016) The following are my observations and recommendations for best practices:

The Need. When looking at a business organizational strategies the first thoughts are
not the need to strategize with regards to the health and wellbeing of our employees. But
they should be. We have established in previous memorandums that our most valuable
assets are our employees. "The workplace is made up of people" (Williams & Cooper,
1999). Despite the acknowledgment of this fact, some companies remain uncomfortable
with the concept of organizational change because they feel it may interfere with work
routines and production schedules and therefore adversely affect their ability to compete.
But research suggests otherwise: that failing to remedy stressful situations can itself
hinder profitability. Stressful conditions are associated with absenteeism, tardiness, and
desire to quit all of which have a negative effect on the bottom line. (NIOSH). Though
we are a public institution of higher learning we still have balance sheets, and profit and
loss statements. When we are not profitable we have less money available for hiring and
challenging the professors at our institution to mold impressionable brains and conduct
groundbreaking research.

A serious question, We spend most of our waking hours at work, so shouldn't we aim
for a positive quality of work life? What if our goal was for people to feel better at the
end of a work day not worse as is often the case? (Gilbreath, Video Lecture:
Introduction to Healthy Work). I am not stating that we do not operate with this question
in mind, I know my department does. I am solely indicating that it is a very valid point
and a question on which time is warranted to discuss. The University system is very
good about promoting from within and allowing opportunity for career advancement.
These are indicators of a positive work environment. Due to recent budgetary issues some
employees have not been replaced when they are terminated or reach retirement. This
has caused some employees to have an overload on the role that they fulfill. This
ultimately leads to higher stress and reduced productivity. This is a characteristic of and
unhealthy work environment. I think that it is important that we examine the different
units within the university system for employee health and wellbeing conductivity. This
is imperative with the geographical environment we are in that has many risks for
seasonal depression.

While I make the recommendation that we need to do our due diligence in regard to
strategies for employee health and wellbeing, I am not arguing that we are facing eminent
danger with regard to that subject. As indicated in my blog, I have had first-hand
experience with incredibly unhealthy psychosocial conditions in the workplace (Dewey,
Contribution 13, 2016) and I feel it would be a disservice to the University of Alaska
system to allow any unit to proceed down that road. If you want a productive company,
you have to have a staff that is healthy both emotionally and physically. If you have a
strategy in place, and you pay attention to your employees, you will be able to see when
issues start to arise by the attendance of your employees and by the morale. (Carlson-
Davis, 2016). Happy, healthy employees are productive employees. The state of Alaska
as a whole can be a harsh place to live, there is extreme weather and a higher cost of
living when compared to many other parts of the country. Retention is an issue for
organizations within and without the University System, If your employees are feeling
like they are being wound too tight, they will want to leave the company or spread
negativity. (Mahany, 2016). The University of Alaska System does not need to do
anything to push valuable employees out the door.

The Tools. To make repairs you need tools. To repair the workplace environment to
reduce stress there are tools that should be in your toolbox. Not all tools are applicable to
all environments. Seiji Machida, Director of the International Labour Office in Geneva,
stated that Tailor-made strategies and approaches must be adopted to the specific
conditions of the workplace in question. The issues in a large plant in an industrialized
country, for instance, may be very different from those in a manufacturing facility in a
developing country. (International Labour Office, Geneva , 2012). It is important to
compare the tools and the workplace conditions to devise the proper strategy.

The International Labour Office in Geneva produced a booklet on practical workplace

stress prevention that includes fifty checkpoints. The checkpoints are divided between
ten sections: leadership and justice at work, job demands, job control, social support,
physical environment, work-life balance and working time, recognition at work,
protection from offensive behavior, job security, and information and communication.
(International Labour Office, Geneva , 2012)

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 The World Health Organization also has a very helpful booklet for systematic problem
solving for stress in the workplace. There is a very helpful detail of stress related hazards
in the workplace covering the nine sections of: job content, workload and work pace,
working hours, participation and control, career development (to include status and pay),
role in the organization, interpersonal relationships, organizational culture, and home-
work interface. (Leka, Griffiths, & Cox, 2004)

In many organizations not only around the country, but around the world, The practice
of self-care isnt taught or encouraged in the work place and it should be. (Lincoln,
2016). This will not be an exhaustive solution, however it can be surprising how many
people do not know how to truly take care of themselves. This could be done in a
seminar format as part of a professional development sequence.

It is helpful for a person to understand what they are doing and why. The concept of
purpose is very important, and in some professions central to the notion of performing the
work the job requires. Yet in the day-to-day rush to meet requirements it is very easily
swept aside. A strong sense of purpose can be a tremendous motivating factor and help
employees unlock their potential. (Danielson, 2016). The checkpoints and strategies in
the resource booklets address this concept, and from personal experience I can vouch that
if there is a why behind the what. the what becomes that more important. We want our
employees to feel that what they do is important, being the world class educational
institution that we are it is often the truth.

Strategically, the first step is to identify any problems or stressors. Second, we must fully
understand the problem. Third, we formulate possible solutions to the problem. Fourth
we implement possible solutions. (NIOSH) Fifth, it is important to follow-up on the
implementation and assess if the formulated solutions are having a positive effect on the
problem or stressor.

I propose that the next step is to utilize the recommendations resulting from the 2017
taskforce to ensure that the University of Alaska system best understands the need for an
employee health and well-being strategy and is prepared with access to the tools and checklists
to improve the psychosocial environment of this institution. Nearly all available research on
job stress supports the same conclusion: stressful working conditions are unhealthy and
counterproductive. The consequences of job stress from high turnover and low morale to greater
risk of illness and injury are damaging to the organization and for the individual. Even though
they may be invisible, psychological and organizational hazards can pervasive and are just as
serious as many of the physical hazards that have been regulated for years. (NIOSH).

An initiative to reduce stress is not going to be completed overnight. In my blog I

discussed the importance of sincerity when implementing actions to enhance the psychosocial
environment in the workplace, if changes are not genuine they will be ineffectual. (Dewey,
Contribution 14, 2016) The best outlook to have is that these must be long-term approaches with
strong employee participation. We need to be realistic and not expect to completely eradicate
stress in the University of Alaska system because while we can always hope for that the

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likelihood of its occurrence is not very high. (Gilbreath, Video: Tools and Checklists for
Addressing Stress in the Workplace) As always we need to do this with the support of our
leadership and have improvements benefit the entire organization.

Thank You,

Danielle M. Dewey

Danielle Dewey
Project Manager, TAACCCT
Mineral Industry Research Laboratory
Institute of Northern Engineering
University of Alaska Fairbanks

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Sources of Further Information
Carlson-Davis, C. (2016). Contribution 13.
Danielson, J. (2016). Contribution 14.
Dewey, D. (2016). Contribution 13.
Dewey, D. (2016). Contribution 14.
Gilbreath, B. (n.d.). Video Lecture: Introduction to Healthy Work.
Gilbreath, B. (n.d.). Video: Introduction to Why We Need a Strategy for Health and
Wellbeing.
Gilbreath, B. (n.d.). Video: Tools and Checklists for Addressing Stress in the Workplace.
International Labour Office, Geneva . (2012). Stress Prevention at Work Checkpoints:
Practical Improvements for Stress Prevention in the Workplace. Geneva: International
Labour Organization.
Leka, S., Griffiths, A., & Cox, T. (2004). Work Organization and Stress: Systematic Problem
Approaches for Employers, Managers and Trade Union Representatives. Geneva: World
Health Organization .
Lincoln, S. (2016). Contribution 14.
Mahany, A. (2016). Contribution 13.
NIOSH. (n.d.). Working with Stress Part 1 of 2. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0YyxwALGaw
NIOSH. (n.d.). Working with Stress Part 2 of 2. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvDc3vuEfWk
NIOSH. (n.d.). Workingwithstress.pdf. Retrieved from National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health: Transcript for Working with Stress
Williams, S., & Cooper, L. (1999). Chapter 1: Why We Need a Strategy for Health and
Wellbeing. In S. Williams, & L. Cooper, Dangerous Waters: Strategies for Improving
Wellbeing at Work (pp. 1-19). John Wiley and Sons, Inc.