­The UK's Communication Workers Union is carrying out a survey into workplace stress at the call centres operated by Virgin Media, Everything Everywhere and TalkTalk.

Based on questions devised by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the survey stems from a Government initiative designed to help both employers and employees to tackle a problem that is estimated to cost British business millions every year, leaving a trail of human misery in its wake.

Deputy general secretary Andy Kerr explains: "Call centres have long been renowned as stressful places to work. Typically that's because they are pretty controlling environments in which employees are monitored extremely closely against a range of targets."

"The trouble is that much of the evidence about the stress this generates is circumstantial - especially in workplaces where the union doesn't currently have recognition - and that's why we're focusing this survey on three major companies in which the CWU has fast-growing call centre memberships but no formal recognition."

The Union added that because the HSE stress survey is scientifically respected, and widely used and recognised by employers, it is hoped that Virgin Media, Everything Everywhere and Talk Talk will engage positively with the union when it comes to discussing the findings.

"Stress is the number one cause of workplace absence, costing organisations millions of pounds each year and contributing to illness and depression, so tackling it is in everyone's interests," Andy emphasises.

"We intend to share the results of the three parallel surveys we're running amongst our members in Virgin Media, Everything Everywhere and TalkTalk with the respective companies, the aim being to start a conversation on this very important issue."