Anxiety toll on authority's staff

Stress is being blamed for a third of the time workers at a council in Leicestershire have taken off sick.

Figures show 556 working days - 35.8% of all sickness absence - were lost as a result of stress between July and September at Charnwood Borough Council.

That compares with 24.3% for the same period last year. In total 1,552 and a half working days were lost.

A statement said the council was going through a period of substantial change aimed at improving services.

The statement said it was natural that stress levels at work would increase during a period of change - but that the sickness and absence rate at Charnwood was on a par with other authorities.