Mental health issues are at the forefront of many business minds as awareness has increased significantly in recent years for what can be considered a growing issue. When discussing employee mental health, it doesn't necessarily mean mental illness.
In fact, an employee's mental health can include how they think, feel and act, as well as their emotional and social well-being. It is critical that businesses not only find a way to foster an employee’s mental health, but manage and track employee wellbeing as well, as mental health can shift over time depending on factors such as workload, stress, and work-life balance.
Many adults who experience mental illness don't receive treatment, despite it being a common contributing factor to disability for 15 to 44 years old U.S. adults. As reported by a study from the Mental Health in the Workplace Summit, mental health issues have become the key reason for employee absenteeism rather than any other injury or illness.
It's common for employees to experience mental health challenges or mental illness. However, as an employer, it is important to create a supportive culture and work environment that helps employees overcome these challenges and hurdles.
Raising mental health awareness and destigmatizing mental health issues are the first steps to supporting employees.
Consider providing resources and information for employees in need of seeking help up front, as it can make communicating with managers or co-workers about any issues they may experience or be experiencing, much easier.
To establish a supportive workplace regarding mental health issues, consider these best practices:
Work-life balance is one of the largest factors that can affect an employee's mental health. Simply put, poor work-life balance can make employee mental health take a turn for the worst.
Employers need to embrace workplace flexibility to help employees better balance their work and personal lives.
While each company is different, there are some common aspects of workplace flexibility, such as:
Chronic workplace stress is a contributing factor to increased employee fatigue, irritability, and health problems. Moreover, workplace stress causes U.S. businesses approximately $300 billion lost in productivity annually.
Common contributors to employee stress in the workplace include:
While it is hard and somewhat impossible to completely eliminate job stress altogether for employees, it is possible to manage it in a way that keeps stress under control. Managers may want to consider implementing various activities to help workers learn how to manage it effectively and further improve employees' health, morale, and productivity.
Common best practices for stress management in the workplace include:
It's also important to evaluate your employee benefit plan and ensure that it supports mental health and wellness. Covering mental health services within your benefits offering is an essential step to creating a culture that supports employee mental health.
Common practices for addressing employee mental health using employee benefits include:
For help with modifying your benefits offerings to support employee mental health, contact an HR and payroll provider today.
Although the destigmatization of mental health has come a long way, the issues are still around and are hindering mental health support in the workplace.
One key solution to this is to properly train management in recognizing the signs of mental illness, excessive workplace stress, workplace bullying, and fatigue.
Managers should be well trained to handle potentially difficult conversations with employees about their mental health. Ultimately, managers should be prepared to speak openly about mental health rather than avoid the topic.
Employers can seek help with mental health management training from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Mental health is a real issue and one of the most important to address in the workplace. It's crucial to recognize its importance and take action to support employees and help them maintain their mental well-being, which will ultimately benefit your company in the long term.
If you ever encounter difficulties resolving this issue on your own, it's always wise to seek out professional guidance from an HR service provider.
Source: https://www.zywave.com/