© Other Mental health

Stress is now the main concern for health and safety officials in UK workplaces, according to a study by the TUC.

The union organisation's survey of around 1,000 health and safety reps found that 70% said stress was a problem in their workplace - the highest proportion recorded in the biennial study - with public sector employees particularly affected.

The top three professions which registered stress as one of their main concerns were central government (93%), education (89%) and health services (82%).

Stress seems to have increased across all areas of the UK, the TUC said.

But it reported that Northern Ireland was most affected - seeing a 13% increase over the past two years in the number of health and safety representatives who identified stress as the number one problem,

The north of England and Scotland also registered significant jumps, of 11% and 8% respectively.

And the issue has become more widespread since 2014, with a 13% increase in the number of medium-sized companies (identified as those with between 50 and 99 workers) who reported stress as one of their top five health and safety concerns.

The study has been released to coincide with World Mental Health Day, and the TUC said it had guidance for any employee suffering from workplace stress, including urging them to discuss the problem.

TUC General Secretary Frances O'Grady said: "The message from the shop floor is clear, stress is becoming a bigger and bigger problem."

"Pressures of long working hours and low job security are being felt in workplaces across the UK.

"It's in no-one's interests to have overstretched workforces.

"People who experience high anxiety are less productive and are more likely to take time off.

"Stress is preventable if staff have reasonable workloads, supportive managers and a workplace free from violence, bullying and harassment."