While employers recognize that workplace stress negatively impacts an employee’s performance, few employers are attempting to resolve the issue, a study finds.

Nearly half (48%) of the employers in Watson Wyatt’s 2007/2008 Staying@Work survey feel long hours are the main cause of work-related stress, however, only 5% are taking action to eliminate the problem. Similarly, 29% believe that employees are experiencing stress as technological devices, such as cell phones and personal digital assitants, are more widely used. But only 6% of employers say they are addressing this concern.

The second most common response to what employers perceive as the greatest causes of workplace stress was maintaining work/life balance at 32%. While a higher number of employers said they were taking action to correct the problem, it is still relatively low (16%).

“Many companies don’t appear to appreciate how stress is affecting their business,” says Shelly Wolff, national practice director of health and productivity at Watson Wyatt. “Too much stress from heavy demands, poorly defined priorities and little on-the-job flexibility can add to health issues. By leaving stress unaddressed, employers invite an increase in unscheduled time off, absence rates and health care costs—all of which hurt a company’s bottom line.”

In fact, stress is the most common explanation employees give for resigning from a company. Although 40% of workers in Watson Wyatt’s 2007/2008 Global Strategic Rewards report list stress as one of their main three reasons for leaving, employers did not include it in the top five reasons they believe employees quit their jobs. They said factors such as insufficient pay and lack of career development were the biggest motivators.

“Pay alone is not enough to retain and engage today’s workers,” says Laura Sejen, global director of strategic rewards at Watson Wyatt. “To remain competitive, companies need to understand fully what causes employees to join or leave and what causes them to be productive if they stay. A total rewards approach that includes both monetary and non-monetary rewards is more meaningful for employees and more effective for employers.”

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