I MUST respond to your shallow reporting of our Stress Management Strategy.

Nearly all the local authorities are currently developing stress management policies, including Lancashire County Council.

Amazingly, the county's own policy was the subject of a brief and comparatively friendly report in the same edition which carried John Blunt's hostile piece (LET, March 26) about Blackburn Council.

Far from pandering to the 'wound-up mardies' at the town hall, the policy represents a sensible and caring approach to the problem of stress which should be seen as a continuing process which also includes sickness absence monitoring, performance appraisals, risk assessments and the monitoring of workloads and working time, managed in compliance with the European Working Time Directive.

Most private sector companies also operate stress management policies to help their employees cope with difficult situations - possibly even Newsquest. We have seen what happens when organisations ignore this most important aspect of valuing staff. Northumberland County Council had to pay a social worker £66,000 compensation following a second nervous breakdown arising from pressure of work.

Other cases have also come to court and many more would surely follow if organisations failed to develop sensible codes of practice.

A proper framework for dealing with employee's concerns is therefore essential and the £37,000 we have set aside is a small price to pay compared with the large sums we and other organisations would face if we chose to ignore this most important element of working life.

J BLACKBURN (Councillor), chairman, Personnel Committee, Blackburn Council.

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