Workplace stress claims rising, U.K. union report says

CAROLYN ALDRED

LONDON - Employers are facing more and more compensation claims for stress at work, repetitive strain injury and discrimination, according to a survey published this month by the Trades Union Congress, the London-based organization representing U.K. labor unions.

The survey of the TUC's legal services for 1997 showed that unions won GBP301 million ($503.5 million) in compensation for members last year, taking their total compensation won for workplace injuries and occupational illness to GBP1.5 billion ($2.5 billion) during the past five years.

Legal services offered by trade unions have expanded significantly in recent years as a means of …