Technology remains one of the biggest stressors in the workplace, a poll has argued, with more than half of workers (56%) finding their workplace IT seriously stressful, including giving them sleepless nights.

While technology promises to make our work easier especially with the growth of AI, if not used correctly it can have the opposite effect, the poll of 1,200 UK workers from software firm WalkMe has argued.

Workplace stress

Quarter feel their employer is ineffective at managing stress

Hybrid workers less sick and less stressed

This is especially true if, instead of being given the right tech to help them, employees are simply given more. At present UK workers are forced to juggle as many as 100+ different software applications each week, it has warned.

As long as technology keeps causing daily frustration, burnout will rise, productivity will suffer, and stress will even permeate into employees’ personal lives, it said.

In the past 12 months alone, workplace IT issues had led to 10% of those polled having arguments with their partner or other family member, and 8% increasing their use of alcohol as a result.

A fifth (20%) said they had lost sleep or felt anxious outside of work because of their IT issues. A total of 10% said they were even considering quitting their job.

More than a third (35%) of UK office workers regularly worked late because of hard-to-use technology. Despite putting in these extra hours to compensate, 25% said issues with technology had in fact hindered their chances of a raise or promotion in the past year.

Matt Pepper, business transformation leader at WalkMe, said: “Stress at work doesn’t exist in a vacuum, it affects employees’ mental health, families and ultimately, whether they stay in their roles. When technology becomes a daily headache, businesses risk losing talented people who feel undervalued and overwhelmed.”

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