Stress crisis at the BBC

Sick days quadruple to 16,000 as staff feel strain of working for Corporation

THE number of sick days taken by BBC staff due to stress has almost quadrupled over the past decade.

Figures from the Corporation reveal a huge rise in people saying they were unable to work due to the pressure of their jobs.

Workers at the BBC were absent last year for 15,751 days – equating to an average of 40 people missing because of stress, anxiety or depression every day. This compares to just 4,135 days being lost to stress in 2013.

The broadcaster said there were six members of staff on its payroll who did not do a single day’s work last year because of the effects of stress, depression or anxiety.

There were 180 staff who suffered so badly they did not report for work for a month.

In all, 462 employees logged a total of 869 stretches of absence from work because of stress.

These figures compare to just 154 people and 225 occasions of stress absence 10 years ago. BBC chiefs have revealed that it spends more than £100,000 a year to provide its staff with free independent counsellors on call 24 hours a day.

Various topics that Corporation staff can speak to them about include bullying, harassment, workplace pressure, work-life balance and stress, as well as immigration, education and relationship issues.

A guide to dealing with anxiety at the BBC tells staff “work-related stress is taken seriously and it is not seen as a taboo subject”.

And advice on spotting the signs of stress in staff recommends being alert to changes in mood or behaviour, such as “deteriorating relationships with colleagues, irritability, indecisiveness, absenteeism and reduced performance”.

A BBC spokesperson said: “The welfare of our staff is of paramount importance and we have a wide range of measures in place to support people who need it.”