More than 3million work days a year are lost due to stress, which is causing a lot of stress among employers. But stay calm. The Health, Safety, Ethical & Environmental Executive (HSE) has published a guide to help employers work with their employees to manage work-related stress. It is called Management Standards for Work-related Stress.

Jane Kennedy, the Government Minister for Work, says: "This is a very practical example of what can be done to demonstrate how easy it can be to reduce the causes of work related stress. The Management Standards for Work-related Stress provide clear advice for employers to follow."

Industry-wide, stress is the biggest single occupational cause of working days lost through injury or ill-health. With an average of 29 days lost per case, it costs in total £3.7billion a year. In 2001/2, more than 500,000 individuals in Britain experienced work-related stress at levels they said made them ill.

With input from a range of businesses, professional bodies, unions, and other Government agencies, the HSE has developed their approach based on a continuous improvement model featuring a benchmarking tool to help managers gauge stress levels, compare themselves with other organisations, and work with employees to identify solutions.

These Management Standards are not new regulations, say the HSE. They are there to help define the characteristics of an organisation where stress is managed effectively. The standards have been welcomed by the CBI and the TUC.

Bill Callaghan, chair of the Health, Safety, Ethical & Environmental Commission, said: "Pressure is part and parcel of all work and helps to keep us motivated. But excessive pressure can lead to stress, which undermines performance, is costly to employers and can make people ill. The Standards highlight the components of good organisation, job design and management that keep stress levels in check and enhance productivity."