Is Your Workplace Mentally Healthy?
Have you thought about how mentally healthy your workplace is? I was fortunate to attend a Heads Up – Better Mental Health in the Workplace workshop provided by Wesley Mission Queensland and was inspired and motivated by what I learned to make my workplace mentally healthy for my staff.
You can find all the information on how to make your workplace mentally healthy from the Heads Up website here or read my summary below.
Around one in five Australian employees is likely to be living with a mental health condition that can affect their productivity at work and personal wellbeing.
There are several simple, effective actions you can take to create a mentally healthy workplace and support your people. They don't need to cost a lot and by involving all employees we can both share responsibilities and increase commitment to the business.
There are three key areas where we can take action to improve mental health in our workplaces:
1. Raise awareness of mental health conditions and reduce stigma
2. Support someone with a mental health condition
3. Create a positive working environment
Heads Up provide ten tips that I found helpful to make my workplace mentally healthy.
1 – Increase awareness of mental health conditions
Make information about mental health conditions available in the workplace (e.g. place resources in lunch areas or on notice boards.)
2 – Increase awareness of people’s responsibilities relating to mental health
Provide staff with information about looking after their own mental health and their legal responsibilities relating to mental health.
3 – Reduce stigma
Speak openly about mental health conditions in the workplace and encourage others to do the same.
4 – Build the skills and confidence to approach someone who may be experiencing difficulties
Check how to have a conversation with a staff member who you may be concerned about and encourage staff to look out for each other.
5 – Encourage staff with mental health conditions to seek treatment and support early
Tailor information about nearby support services and info lines to your needs
6 – Support staff with mental health conditions to stay at or return to work
Where necessary and in collaboration with your people, make changes to their role and/ or working environment to enable them to fulfill their work duties. This might include giving them time off to see a health professional, adjusting working hours, avoiding unnecessary shift changes, and reallocating tasks.
7 – Monitor and manage workloads
Encourage your people to speak up at an early stage and seek guidance.
8 – Increase input in how people do their work
Your people have direct Insight and experience in achieving the tasks at hand - they can help. Listen to their ideas and feedback on how tasks are completed.
9 – Prevent bullying and discrimination
Encourage an environment of dignity and respect so that employees can share any concerning behaviour at an early stage. Make it clear that you support open communication, and ensure you have processes and/ or policies in place to deal with any issues.
10 – Provide regular performance feedback
Recognise whenever a task is done well and give constructive feedback on areas for improvement.
Find out more about mentally healthy workplaces by visiting Heads Up