Getting mental health wrong is plain crazy
We reviewed 46 employers, surveyed 15,000 employees and conducted 400 hours of in depth interviews for Time to Change in two years. But the internet loves a list, so here’s a short summary of six things to think about where you work.
- Mental health is normal. So let’s talk about it.
One in four suffer from mental health problems. Stress, anxiety, depression, low mood, panics… It affects me, you and everyone we know. So we need to talk about it. Normalise it. To make it as common as a cold. Then maybe we can tackle the subject openly and face the fact that’s it’s the most common cause of absence, up there with physical injury.
- Treat it like a physical injury
Ok so I have a bad cold. Don’t come in – stay away. You rest up. We’ll record it with HR, deal with your work and hand it back when you’re better. If only we could treat a panic attack or a stress episode like that. And I include HR in this: you need to provide a clear, well-communicated process for people to get help.
- Set up a group to share experiences
Other people have this? Plenty. So why not set up a group for people who experience this stuff to talk about it. Or an internet forum or buddy system. Or get a few people trained as mental health ‘first aid’ champions.
- Train managers to talk
Managers are managers because they are technically good but rarely get told how to talk about the other stuff. Please don’t turn managers into therapists (disaster) but DO remind them of their responsibilities to their team. Manager training was recommended in 45 out of 46 reviews we did.
- Employees have responsibility too
You have a shared responsibility to help yourself. So, if you’re burning the candle at three ends and self-medicating with substances because you’re stressed, then you’ll implode. Look after yourself. Learn mindfulness. Speak up if you’re ill.
- View mental health as a business decision
Senior leaders, CEOs, MDs, it’s YOUR responsibility to get your business head around this, tackling the stigma and helping your teams be the best they can be. (And avoiding reputation damage and tribunals). Start by asking staff what’s hot and what’s not about working for you. Ask Kin & Co about engaging staff through their LIVE proposition. And make some changes: our research showed they’ll love you for it.
Tom Oxley is workplace mental health, corporate responsibility and comms specialist. He co-wrote Creating Mentally Healthy Workplaces with Dr Helen Ferris-Baker.