Workplace stress behind short-term absence

AHEAD OF Blue Monday on 19 January 2026 and Time to Talk Day on 5 February 2026, Dr Macarena Staudenmaier shares key findings from the 2025 Health and Wellbeing Report at Work report from CIPD and Simplyhealth about stress in the workplace.

Key stats

• 26% of organisations report stress as a cause of short-term absence in their top three causes.

• The most common causes of stress are heavy workloads (41%), followed by personal health issues (37%) and family/relationships (34%).

• 64% of HR professionals reported stress-related absence in their organisation in the last year.

• 64% of organisations report that they are taking steps to identify and/or reduce stress in the workplace.

• However, only 50% of organisations think their efforts are effective.

  Top tips

  For employees seeking to reduce and manage stress, Dr Macarena Staudenmaier recommends the following:

• Exercise: Regular exercise, especially aerobic exercise, like brisk walking, cycling or swimming, is one of the best things we can do for reducing stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms. It helps regulate your body’s stress response system, can help reduce muscle tension and helps with sleep. Aim for 20-30 minutes of movement that gets you a bit out of breath, 5 days a week. Even 10-20 minute bursts make a difference.

• Mindfulness: This technique helps people learn how to slow down and respond to stress differently. There’s a lot of research that shows that mindfulness helps people notice stress earlier and regulate their emotions more effectively, rather than feeling overwhelmed by them. Simple techniques like paying attention to your breathing, your body and some gentle movement can be hugely impactful.

• Speak to a professional: Stress and mental health problems can happen to anyone. Talking to a trained professional can really help. Therapies like cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) are proven to help people manage stress and anxiety, especially work-related stress. There are different types of talking therapies available, and the right one can help you understand your thoughts, feelings and reactions better. Finding a therapist and approach that works for you can make a big difference.

  Her advice for employers looking to support stress management in the workplace is:

• Communicate openly with employees to help build trust. Creating a culture where it’s okay to talk about stress and mental health at work, and where employees feel supported, will make it more likely that they ask for help early.

• Train managers to spot and respond to stress. Supporting line managers to notice early signs of stress, have open conversations and know when and how to signpost for support plays a key role.

• Offer access to support services. Provide clear routes to help, like employee assistance programmes, counselling, or mental health services. It’s important to make sure employees know what’s available to them and how to access it.

Dr Macarena Staudenmaier said: “Life can bring many challenges, and at times these can feel overwhelming, affecting our wellbeing both at home and at work. Our recent research shows this is a growing issue: 64% of organisations reported at least one stress-related absence in the past year. While progress has been made, with 57% of organisations now having a wellbeing strategy in place (up from 44% five years ago), there is still more to do to reduce stress-related absence, which continues to cost the economy billions each year.

“Creating supportive and psychologically safe workplaces is a vital first step. However, even the best workplace culture cannot remove life’s challenges entirely. It’s important that employees also feel able, and encouraged, to access professional support when they need it. When open workplace cultures are combined with timely, expert help, difficult periods can feel far more manageable.”