About StressCafé
StressCafé is a unique portal for gathering and sharing important information about workplace stress associated with different occupations in Australia and overseas. Our aim is to develop understanding of this important and growing feature of working life and to assist in the evolution of workplace conditions which minimise worker stress and injury.

​The StressCafé has something for everyone: workers, academics, professionals and researchers.​
​Summary Infographics on Workplace Psychological Distress and Depression
Check out our handy infographics on our findings. These images are an easy starting point to understanding the prevalence of workplace psychological stress and depression. We encourage people to refer to and use these statistics and graphics where necessary, whether for around the office or for OH&S meetings. Click on the image to take you through the full images.
Latest Items​
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Australian Workplace Barometer Factsheet 2021 Published
Authors: Maureen Dollard, Mikaela Owen, Ali Afsharian, Rachael Potter
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A summary of the findings by researchers at the Psychosocial Safety Climate Global Observatory has been published. The report highlights the major problems plaguing the psychological health and wellbeing of Australian workplaces, including the relatively high prevalence of workplace bullying. As the authors warn, "Results suggest that current approaches to preventing bullying and harassment in Australian workplaces are having little effect.​"
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Recent Media Activity
  • e-Stress project team member, Dr Amy Zadow, was interviewed on ABC TV News by Kirsten Aiken about the concept of ‘always working’ and email use at home (15/07/2021).
  • e-Stress project team member, Dr Amy Zadow, was interviewed on the radio by Toby Hemmings on The Daily, the radio morning current affairs program on 2SER 107.3FM in Sydney (15/07/2021).
  • e-Stress project team member, Dr Amy Zadow, was interviewed by Emily Day from The Age. The article was published in both The Age and Sydney Morning Herald newspapers on ‘What could be so bad about answering a few emails in the evening?' (15/07/2021).
  • e-Stress project work was featured in the India Times, New Atlas, Shortpedia, Channel NewsAsia and seventeen other international outlets from 15 - 19/7/21.
  • e-Stress project team member, Dr Amy Zadow, was interviewed by Victoria Allen, Science Correspondent for the UK Daily Mail. The resultant newspaper article was published ‘Answering emails could be bad for your health’ (15/7/21) and in Australia as ‘Step away from the smartphone: Answering emails out of hours increases your risk of stress, emotional exhaustion headaches and back pain, experts warn’ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-9792209/Answering-emails-hours-increases-risk-stress-experts-warn.html
  • e-Stress project team member, Dr Amy Zadow, was interviewed by Trine Solberg, a journalist from the Norwegian newspaper, Nettavisen, (14/07/2021).
  • e-Stress project team member, Dr Amy Zadow, was interviewed by Matt van Wyk on the Monday Breakfast program on 2SER 107.3FM, a community radio station in Sydney (26/07/2021) Link to interview recording -  https://2ser.com/the-creep-of-workplace-digital-communications/ 
  • e-Stress project work was featured on HRM (The news site of the Australian HR Institute)(24/08/2021) https://www.hrmonline.com.au/employee-wellbeing/leaveism-presenteeism-wellbeing/ 
Professor Dollard Announced as Recipient of Australian Laureate Fellowship and Named the Kathleen Fitzpatrick Laureate Fellow of 2020
Professor Maureen Dollard was awarded one of the Australian Research Council's most prestigious grants, receiving a Australian Laureate Fellowship (ALF) for 2020. Significant project resourcing has allowed the foundation of the Psychosocial Safety Climate Global Observatory. In addition to the ALF, Professor Dollard was awarded the 2020 Kathleen Fitzpatrick Laureate Fellowship, awarded to 'outstanding female researchers in humanities, arts and social sciences'.
The PSC Observatory is a proposed new ALF research platform that will lead to ground-breaking, interdisciplinary, international, research. It will bring together world class researchers, will inspire and conduct rigorous research on PSC, and will collect, collate, analyse, synthesise and publish PSC data and informatics at the global, national, and corporate level, with the potential to change workplace policy-making world-wide. 
​Life and Health Re-imagined 
Paper 1 - 2020
Getting back to work
​Authors Professor Tony LaMontagne
Institute for Health Transformation, Deakin University
Professor Maureen Dollard
Centre for Workplace Excellence, University of South Australia
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Summary - how can we reshape work to benefit everyone?
Equity prioritised
The pandemic has pointed out some stark inequities that can and should be addressed now including, but not limited to, sick leave, job security, workloads and other job demands.
Safe and healthy workplaces
Work needs to be safe and healthy, both physically and psychologically. Pre-COVID-19 only 52% of Australian workers reported that their workplace was psychologically healthy, work pressure was increasing, and bullying rates were high. Organisations need to better align the future of work with a human-centred agenda and this seems more urgent post-COVID. Developing a strong psychosocial safety climate means building a system to identify, prevent and manage risks.
Sustainable work
We need to see work in the context of the current reality, and its interconnections with other domains of life. Work needs to be sustainable - the demands and rewards of work need to be fairly balanced, and we need to able to balance work with other aspects of life.
Environmental and social sustainability
We need to be thinking about jobs and employment that are at a minimum compatible with environmental sustainability. This means rethinking work in light of shared social, health, and environmental benefits - not just GDP, competition and profits.

Please click here to read more. ​
Leading WHS expert calls for psychosocial safety climate KPIs
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A leading safety and organisational psychology expert has called for psychosocial safety climate (PSC) to be adopted as a company KPI for ethical management, because of its effectiveness in preventing worker mental ill-health and absenteeism.
PSC measures how much an organisation values and prioritises the ​psychological health of workers, compared to "productivity imperatives" like downsizing and lean structures, Professor Maureen Dollard, one of the researchers who developed the PSC theory, told the Australian and New Zealand Society of Occupational Medicine Annual Scientific Meeting in Adelaide last week. Dollard is the director of the University of South Australia's Asia Pacific Centre for Work Health and Safety, and was involved in developing the PSC-12 scale that was used in the Australian Workplace Barometer project funded by Safe Work Australia. ​Please click here to read more. 
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Working conditions
Global working conditions: Australia
Working conditions in a global perspective
Mikaela Owen, Tessa Bailey, Amy Zadow and Maureen Dollard, University of South Australia​

This report uses the Australian Workplace Barometer Survey (AWB; 2009-2015) to describe working conditions in the labour market in Australia. The AWB focus on employees. The AWB gathers detailed information over time on a broad range of issues relating to working conditions (including exposure to physical and psychosocial risks), work organisation, work–life balance, and health and well-being. It covers all industries and occupational groups including the public and private sectors.
File Size: 1183 kb
File Type: pdf
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NZ workplace study shows more than quarter of employees feel depressed much of the time
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According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the workplace can be a positive force for improving mental health. But many workers are exposed to work environments that are damaging to their psychological health and leave them burnt out. As the nature of work changes – including technological advancements, reduced job security, and blurred work/non-work boundaries – psychosocial harm is likely to increase. Despite their popularity, many wellness initiatives directed towards “stressed” workers simply help people to cope a little longer with a toxic and damaging environment. The underlying risks remain. The New Zealand Workplace Barometer (NZWB) seeks to understand the causes of psychosocial risks - factors that encompass mental, emotional, social and spiritual dimensions of what it means to be healthy. ​Please click here to read more. ​
MOD.​ Exhibition; Psychologically Safe Workplaces and  Happiness at work
Data from Australian Workplace Barometer (AWB) was used in the Museum of Discovery (MOD.) third exhibition exploring HEDONISM. Professor Maureen Dollard and Dr Ali Afsharian, from the Centre for Workplace Excellence (CWeX), presented research results on Psychosocial Safety Climate (PSC) and Happiness in workplaces. They looked specifically at young workers' (aged 15-25 years) perceptions of PSC and happiness at work and how these varied by industry. Over 45 000 people visited the exhibition.
Please click here to read more. 
​"Psychosocial Safety Climate Factor – The new Buzzword"
Published on the WorkPro Blog: "Have you heard the new buzzword – ‘Psychosocial safety climate factor’? If not, this is one you want to get your head around as you’ll be hearing a lot more of this term in to the future. It relates to the psychological health of workers. Worker’s compensation claims in Australia over the last 10 years indicate a steady increase in psychological injuries and these type of claims incur the largest proportion of expense in relation to compensation claims (Safe Work Australia: The Incidence of Accepted Workers’ Compensation Claims for Mental Stress in Australia, April 2013)."
Please click here to read more. 

​International Labour Organization conference on Work and Well-being
​in the 21st Century

​Tessa Bailey and Maureen Dollard attended the International Labour Organization conference on Work and Well-being in the 21st Century and participated in a Special session from Secretary and Co-Chairs of ICOH WOPS on Preventing psychosocial risks at work. Tessa gave a summary of ICOH WOPS committee members and activities. Maureen presented a paper on hierarchical position influences on workers perception of psychosocial safety climate. Tessa presented a paper on Psychosocial Safety Climate Framework in a large Australian public sector organization.
​​Maureen participated in an Invited Plenary Discussion, on technology and well-being in the world of work. Please watch the video below.
ILO Thinkpiece: The Work-Stress Conundrum and the Future of Work
Maureen Dollard and Daniel Neser were invited to write a thinkpiece for the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to celebrate its 100 year anniversary, with a discussion on the future of work. The piece discusses the future continuity of work-stress given the persistence of resource scarcity and competitive work conditions. 
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Where are the psychological health and safety policy gaps?
Dr Rachael Potter
Date: Tuesday, 28 May, 2019 - 15:45
Category: Industry news
Location: National News
The Australian Institute of Health and Safety
Dr Rachael Potter interviewed by the AIHS on the topic of regulatory frameworks and protection of workplace psychological health.
​Please click here to read more. 

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Our Projects

E-STRESS IN AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
​This project aims to advance our theoretical and practical understanding of the well-being of staff through assessing the impact of digital communication and competitive pressures faced by the university sector. An overarching goal of this project is to test the integration of Psychosocial Safety Climate (PSC) and the new Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) theory.
THE AUSTRALIAN WORKPLACE BAROMETER
The Australian Workplace Barometer (AWB) project aims to provide science-driven evidence of Australian work conditions and their relationships to workplace health and productivity, through a national monitoring and surveillance system.
SCHOOL LEAVERS STUDY
​The School Leavers Study surveyed information between 2002-2012 from young people about their transition from adolescence to adult life. As it spanned a long time period, we explored how important aspects of young peoples lives changed over time and are related to their overall health and well-being.
PATHWAYS TO ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP
The Pathways to Active Citizenship study explores education and employment outcomes among young people from refugee backgrounds aged between 15 and 24 years. The study will also identify the facilitators and barriers to a successful transition from school into further education and employment, assess the extent of youth and family awareness of education, training and employment pathways, and identify available support systems.
FRONTLINE HEALTHCARE PROJECT
​The Frontline Healthcare Project helps to develop a theoretical and practical understanding of how workplace physical and psychosocial facets combine to influence workplace health and safety in the healthcare industry.
FUTURE INDUSTRIES INSTITUTE PROJECT
More information coming soon.
Tranquillising Work Stress: Corporate Climate and Antidepressant Use
The Tranquillising Work Stress project will investigate the plausible link between distress at work and Australia’s high levels of antidepressant use, through creative linkage of data from the Australian Workplace Barometer (10-year longitudinal study) to antidepressant medication data (via the national Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme). The project advances theory by probing the role corporate climate plays in work design, distress, mental health problems and antidepressant use. It will determine if antidepressant use has led to an underestimation of work stress effects. It will estimate the $AUD cost of work related antidepressant use. The project will yield evidence to stimulate corporate climate change to protect worker psychological health and wellbeing.
How to cite this website: 
Centre for Workplace Excellence (CWeX) (2019) StressCafé [Promoting healthier, happier, safer, and more productive work environments]. Retrieved from https://www.stresscafe.com.au/

Website Editor: Prof. Maureen Dollard
​Publications officer: Dr Ali Afsharian
Copyright © 2015