Under Pressure

Deadlines, overtime, demanding owners:
How does the industry handle its stress?

By Paul Snyder

That makes for a lot of sick days Chronic stress can damage the immune system, double the risk of heart attack and increase the likelihood of developing gum disease, osteoporosis and serious illnesses like diabetes or cancer. Source: Mental Health Association of Milwaukee County

Aug. 18 was a rather stressful evening in southern Wisconsin.

That night, a record-setting 26 tornadoes touched down in the state. They destroyed 67 homes, damaged another 400, took one life and caused more than $47 million in damage across 10 counties.

The immediate-response program of Engineered Construction Inc., Verona, was at ravaged sites that night and remained to help repair buildings hurt by the storms.

Shocked residents, meanwhile, took stock of what was left.

“It was crazy, basically,” said William Jackson, vice president of business and marketing with Engineered Construction. “You really start to see the effects of high stress on the field in those kinds of situations.

“You’ve gotta get in control of it. I mean, we set up seven job sites in the wake of the tornadoes, and the fact that it was scattered and we’re working in an emergency setting just escalates the stress level tenfold.”

And in a business that sows the seeds of stress every day, that’s saying a lot.

Thoughts of chickens and eggs aside, the construction industry offers up its own intriguing riddle: Which came first, the project or the stress?

Stress is so intertwined with construction that its presence on sites and in offices is all but inescapable.

“The nature of the business is that it’s almost a blame business,” said Jackson. “You get someone saying, ‘Well we’re behind because the plumber’s behind.’ And the plumber says, ‘Well I’m behind because he’s behind,’ and so on and so forth.”

By the Numbers Seventy-five percent of doctor visits are the result of stress-related ailments. hOne in four people report they have missed work as a result of work-related stress. Studies show that 10 minutes to 20 minutes of quiet reflection or meditation a day can bring relief from chronic stress and increase stress tolerance. Source: Mental Health Association of Milwaukee County

And it doesn’t seem to be getting any easier.

“We are forever being asked to get projects done faster, cheaper and safer,” said Kevin O’Toole, executive vice president of Hunzinger Construction Co., Brookfield.

That pressure leads to stress, said Stephen Guastello, a professor in Marquette University’s Department of Psychology. Guastello, the author of “Chaos, Catastrophe and Human Affairs: Applications of Nonlinear Dynamics to Work, Organi-zations, and Social Evolutions,” which devotes an entire chapter to stress in the workplace, said there are three elements at the root of workplace stress.

“First, you have to look at the physical environment and consider weather climates and danger levels, which on construction sites can be pretty high,” he said. “Second, there are the social factors. These can be interactions with co-workers or superiors, for example, which can make the job more stressful.

“Finally there are the work cycles, or the demands of the workload, that can be too much or too little for those involved.”

That a construction site is a dangerous place almost goes without saying. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics tallied 5,703 industry-related fatalities nationwide in its 2004 census.

But surely with all the job training available, workers have some sense of what lies in store for them when they take on a project. Are construction workers just thrill-seekers who can handle and enjoy the dangers of the job?

“Sensation-seeking might be related to the attraction to some types of construction jobs,” Gua-stello said. “It’s not necessarily that they get their giggles from being in dangerous environments, but more that their nervous systems are tuned to stay cool in situations that would rattle most people.”

ut even the most tranquil nervous systems have their breaking points. Coupling daily on-site threats with Wisconsin’s weather extremes can be highly demanding on workers’ bodies and psyches.

“It used to be that guys could take three months off in the winter,” said Brian Oberle, safety director with J.P. Cullen & Sons Inc., Janesville. “But you don’t get that anymore. Schedules get so condensed. People want things done, and they want things quicker.”

He added that the call for getting things done faster means workers are overextending themselves and putting in up to 10 hours of overtime a week, which drains them of any real productivity. They’re also getting stressed out.

Cara Hansen, information and assistance coordinator with the Mental Health Association in Milwaukee County, said it’s important for workers to take a break every now and then to relieve the mind and body of a lot of the job’s pressure.

The MHA offers brochures and pamphlets relating to workplace stress and provides tips, such as set realistic goals, be flexible, go easy on criticism and avoid excessive competition.

Beyond normal CIt’s a normal function for the body to produce stress, and it’s usually that energy that helps people meet daily goals and deadlines. According to Hansen, the body has pre-programmed fight-or-flight responses to help people deal with instances of immediate danger. The problem is that this innate programming handles all stress the same. Constant stress can make breakfast choices fight-or-flight decisions. “When the little things start to overwhelm you, it’s time to take notice,” she said.

That may be easier said than done. While realistic goals are practical in theory, they may be out of workers’ hands. Oberle said owners and company executives need to recognize the pressure they instill by demanding quicker project completion.

“It’s the guys that promise the moon, and then they can’t deliver,” he said. “With all the advancements in technology, you have to remember there’s still that human function that goes into the work.”

The job site isn’t entirely conducive to eliminating competition or criticism, either.

“There’s a lot of testosterone and a lot of ego out there,” Jackson said, adding that the sense of pride workers take in their projects can be intense and can quickly go too far.

Oberle agreed.

“There’s a lot of competition in this business,” he said. “You get down to things like piece counts and block counts, and you’re always being checked up on. There’s always an inherent push to do more.”

The problem really pops up for people who don’t take criticism well. Hansen said people who need a strong sense of control or are perfectionists will easily become overstressed when things don’t go their way. This leads to a sense of little or no control, which only amplifies the stress level. The result? As in any office, daunting pressure can lead to some nasty exchanges.

“As far as personality conflicts go, you’re going to have them,” Jackson said. “If we have job supervisors who are good, but they clash with a project manager, then we just try to keep them separate. Just because they don’t get along doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not valuable employees.”

O’Toole said Hunzinger combats conflict with thorough preparation before beginning a job. Company leaders match project managers to the project and owner types, and all the parties involved in a project discuss every potential road bump. O’Toole said it’s an approach that eliminates the blame aspect of the business.

“If I tell you you’re holding up the job, I can guarantee you’re going to tell me at least five people who are holding you up,” he said. “So we set up a scorecard that allows for conversation if somebody is late getting their submittal in. That way, it becomes, ‘We are not meeting our goals,’ instead of, ‘You are not meeting them.’

What can we do to facilitate you?”

He maintained that it’s necessary for companies to be on top of problems.

“Companies that recognize issues need to address them proactively,” he said. “If you’re continually reacting, what good does it do? At the end of the day, nothing is done.”

That approach is exactly what Hansen said is valuable in reducing workplace stress. Doors need to be open, and people need to feel free to communicate and share their concerns and problems. Ignoring stress is only going to hurt a company in the long run.

“You get an increased number of accidents, so you’re ending up paying more workers’ compensation, and health-care costs go up because workers are constantly going to doctors,” she said. “The reason they’re all going to doctors is because they have headaches, which can be treated. But they have to keep returning because the doctors aren’t treating the root of the problem.”

She also warned that in addition to absenteeism, employers may have to deal with “presenteeism,” which she said arises when people show up for work but are under so much mental strain that they can’t properly perform their jobs.

In addition to being able to communicate at work, Oberle said, it’s important to have a strong support system at home. That way, problems at home aren’t finding their way into the office, and vice versa.

“If you don’t have that support system, you’re not going to make it,” he said.

But for all the information, support, advice and squeezable foam balls ready to help workers alleviate the pressures of the job, the fact is that stress is still at the core of the construction industry. Jackson said workers need to be ready for it.

“You can have 30 years experience, but if you can’t handle the stress, it’s not the market for you,” he said.