How to Help Employees Overcome Pre-Work Stress

It’s 8 p.m. on a Sunday. You spent the last two hours dreading the upcoming workweek. As the night progresses, your anxiety only gets worse.

Even if this doesn’t sound familiar to you, it does to about 75 percent of U.S. adults, and likely many of your employees.

According to a Monster survey, three quarters of the country consistently feel “really bad” anxiety on Sundays, the day before work starts.

This perpetual stress can spread through the workplace and wreak all sorts of havoc, leading to lower productivity, higher absenteeism and poorer mental health. But there are ways you can help employees overcome pre-work stress.

What Can You Do?

Pre-work stress, or the “Sunday blues,” can be brought on by a number of factors.

While there’s no blanket cure, you can still work to reduce employee stress. Here are some tips:

• Sit down with employees to discuss workloads and reassign tasks as needed.
• Track employees’ accomplishments publicly and recognize hard work.
• Implement a “no work after work hours” policy to promote a better work-life balance.
• Help employees form and execute meaningful career goals.

Above all, encourage employees to come to you if they feel stressed. An open-door policy can help address issues before they get out of hand.

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