It is important to tell the difference between over-working and simply working very hard when it comes to work/life balance, it has been claimed.

Paul Marsh, president of the Law Society, has said that stress does not just affect the employee involved, it also has an impact on the business.

He said that stress is "the enemy of good business and the best friend of mistakes" and that the Law Society could help those who were feeling the strain.

Mr Marsh's comments come after a report from the Health and Safety Executive showed that work-related stress is responsible for more than a third of all new incidences of illness.

The report, Improving Efficiency And Productivity By Managing Attendance And Work-Related Stress, also revealed that 13.8 million working days were lost because of work-related depression, stress and anxiety in 2006/07.

It also noted that for every case of work-related stress, depression or anxiety related illness, an average of 30.2 working days is lost.