How Stress Destroys HSE Culture (and What to Do About It)

Many companies focus on physical risks, overlooking a crucial aspect — employee stress at work. Research shows that 58% of workplace incidents and accidents occur due to employee burnout.

Why is stress dangerous?

Tired employees lose focus and make mistakes much more frequently. If we examine this aspect in a "relatively safe" office, we see that stress and fatigue often lead to micro-injuries, which most commonly occur due to employee carelessness, including simply moving through corridors and stairs.

Additionally, stress and fatigue weaken the immune system, and employees get sick more often.

Our company has adopted a comprehensive employee care strategy, which specifically highlights the "fight against stress."

To reduce employee stress, we have made our offices — not just in Moscow — as comfortable as possible:

In our company, special zones and equipment have been organized to combat stress:

• game rooms equipped with sports gear, treadmills, table tennis, and table football/hockey
• wall-mounted magnetic games like chess and checkers are placed on the floors
• for creative people who need privacy to focus, coworking spaces — creativity and silence rooms — have been organized
• "soft zones" with sofas, armchairs, and poufs have been organized for relaxation and socializing
• in open-space working conditions, room zoning has been organized using greenery
• for relaxation and meetings in an alternative setting, landscaped summer terraces are organized during the warm season
• to relieve tension and physical fatigue, zones with massage chairs are organized on the floors
• to increase employee comfort regarding everyday needs, the following have been organized:

- comfortable dining areas on each floor, where tea, coffee, and various "treats" are also freely available, and canteens with a variety of dishes for different dietary preferences

- office "Domestic Services" have been organized — an ironing room to maintain a neat appearance, as well as a vending machine with hosiery products

- in each restroom, there are also lint rollers for cleaning clothes and shoe sponges, hand creams, and toiletries

• soundproof phone booths have been organized for privacy and confidential conversations
• to save employees' time on ordering office supplies, a unique "tree" "grows" on each floor, where all necessary stationery is always freely available

Creating an environment where employees feel psychologically comfortable not only reduces our employees' stress, it is also the foundation for strengthening the HSE culture and the success of our company's business. Many companies follow this path and implement similar projects for their employees.