Is your workplace helping or hindering your mental health? Mental Health awareness is so important for individuals and employers. Employers must take responsibility for their employee’s mental health in the workplace.
Some factors that can have a negative impact on your mental health are:
· Unmanageable workloads, long hours and increasing pressures
· Lack of control over work and poor supervision from management
· Bullying, stigmatisation, and bad relationships with peers
· Lack of involvement when the workplace is undergoing change
· Inadequate pay, problems receiving pay and lack of reward or recognition
· Dangerous or poor physical working environments
· Traumatic experiences
There is legislation in place relating to mental health in the workplace such as: Health and safety at work act 1974, Mental Health Act 1983, Mental Capacity Act 2005, Equality Act 2010, Date Protection Act 2018 and the Human Rights Act 1998.
Guidance can be found at www.nice.org.uk and www.hse.gov.uk
HSE work related statistics show that a staggering 595,000 workers suffer from a work-related stress, depression, or anxiety and 15.4 million working days are lost due to this. The amount of working days lost due to stress, depression, or anxiety accounted for 57% of all working days lost due to ill health.
What employers can do to help build a positive mental health culture in the workplace:
· Develop a mental health action plan and implement an effective mental health policy.
· Provide mental health training including specific first aid for mental health for employees across all levels of the organisation.
· Publicise the organisations commitment to mental health, as with environmental commitments.
· Evaluate the possible causes of mental ill-health in the workplace and signify which areas need improvement.
· Ensure employers and management spend time getting to know employees and communicate with them.
· Monitor employee performance and provide recognition and reward for achievements.
· Introduce networks, initiatives and activities involving mental health and communicate this.
· Offer occupational health services, return to work schemes, employee assistance programmes and allow flexible working hours to help employees meet their responsibilities outside of the workplace.
· Make employees feel valued by involving them in decision making and managing their own workloads.
Employees can also build a positive mental health culture in the workplace by:
· Educating themselves on mental health and wellbeing and participate in workplace initiatives.
· Make an effort to talk to their colleagues and ask how they are feeling.
· Don’t be afraid to talk to someone about their feelings and ask for help.
· Build friendships with colleagues.
· Make the most of their lunch break- eat healthy, read a book, listen to music, or take a stroll.
· Take a break.
· Ensure they have a good work-life balance and don’t overdo it.
· Have a good sleep pattern.
There are so many benefits of having a positive mental health culture in the workplace if you would like to learn more please visit https://www.strongrootstraining.com/mental-health-first-aid-courses
