Is your workplace mentally healthy?

“This article was written by our Founder, Dr Kylie Henderson.”

Even on a good week, the average Australian, employed fulltime, is likely to spend around 40-50 per cent of their waking life working. Then you add in the daily commute, last-minute deadlines, extra shifts and performance pressure. You don’t have to look far to see work comprises a significant part of most people’s lives.

Is it any wonder mentally healthy workplaces are becoming a global priority?

In recognition of World Mental Health Day 2019 (but indeed, as something I passionately advocate for every day of the year), I urge all employers and executives to ask the question: is your workplace mentally healthy?

How can you tell?

First things first – how can you tell? That’s a fair question and a useful starting point.

At The Better Health Generation, we have the expertise to help you work through this question in a structured and tailored way for your business. I encourage you to get in touch if this is something you would like to know more about.

But as an initial benchmark, Australian not-for-profit Beyond Blue has put together an excellent guide to mental health in the workplace. They give a few key indicators:

• People at all levels have a shared vision of, and commitment to, positive mental health.
• Work demands are realistic in a way that balances the needs of the staff and the employer.
• Work demands do not pose an unreasonable risk to the mental health of individuals.
• Everyone in the workplace feels comfortable to speak openly about mental health and mental health conditions, without fear of stigma or discrimination.

Does this sound like where you work?

If so, you’re probably pretty lucky. At least according to UK figures, which suggest that half of all workplaces don’t have a mental health strategy. This is, of course, before you examine whether or not that mental health strategy is ‘working’ as it should for the business.

When you dig deeper into the UK figures, focusing on small to medium enterprises in particular, you get an even grimmer result: just 27 per cent of these businesses have a mental health strategy in place.

Anecdotally, based on more than 20 years specialising in work-related psychology in Australia, I’d say this sounds about right for Australian businesses too. Companies rarely have the specialised knowledge needed in-house to develop a strategy, and I speak to many managers and owners who would love to offer better supports but aren’t quite sure where to start.

A positive message within the UK research (which has also been my experience locally) is that more and more companies are seeking help to set up a proper mental health strategy.

Protect, promote, support

This brings me to the three-pronged approach that we often speak about with our customers – especially when they need to articulate to other internal stakeholders why mental health must become a priority in their business.

In essence, you can demonstrate the need for a mental health strategy across these three prongs:

1. Protecting the business. Although it’s not my favourite way to talk about the importance of mental health, the reality is that focusing on better mental health does make smart financial sense. Poor mental health is linked to a lot of poor workplace outcomes such as low employee retention, absenteeism and injury at work – all of which add up in terms of costs. Safe Work Australia has put together some figures, the headlines of which are that 7,200 Australians are compensated for work-related mental health conditions annually, to the tune of around $543 million in claims.

2. So, there is a solid business case for promoting mental health awareness. A good mental health strategy seeks first to implement preventative measures. Again, the Beyond Blue guide is excellent background reading here. Another useful document has been put together by researchers at a couple of Australian universities alongside the Institute for Safety, Compensation and Recovery Research. While some of the measures within are more ‘clinically focused’, you might be surprised to learn that there are also ‘common sense’ tips like creating spaces where employees can interact socially and ensuring regular access to sunlight and fresh air.

3. Ensuring support is in place is the final crucial element. Methods for encouraging communication, openness and understanding of mental health conditions should form part of any strategy. If an employee has concerns, either about themselves or a colleague – what can they do? If a manager has concerns about an employee, what can they do? And, as a final stage, what is the correct process if further action needs to be taken? There are clinical frameworks and guidelines to help you address all of these challenges within your business – it’s simply a matter of investing the time and the resources now to get your strategy in place.

Want to know more?

As always, I would love to hear from you if you have any further questions or would like more information. Reach out to me via direct message or have a read over our website and the different types of services we offer, and then get in touch with our team.