Employee mental health: Employee mental health refers to the mental and emotional well-being of employees in the workplace.

This is a shocking number, especially when we take into account that depression is not as prevalent as anxiety disorders. Companies need to do more to promote mental health and support employees who are dealing with mental health issues.

This means increased sickness absence, high staff turnover and poor performance in the organization and a possible increase in accidents due to human error. The Mayo Clinic says job burnout is a type of work-related stress that results in a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that can influence an employee’s self-worth and sense of identity. The pandemic and consequential labor shortage put burnout in the spotlight and forced employers to confront it. Now, HR leaders are working to combat and prevent burnout as part of their overall mental health and wellness strategies.

In the absence of adequate welfare systems and the lack of opportunities for life beyond retirement age, the focus of employers in developing countries is clearly a different matter . Advocacy for improving workplace mental health must focus on fundamental changes in labour market reform and further control over informal working conditions that are so prevalent in developing countries . Such reform may in turn lead to a happier and more productive workforce . The workplace has been increasingly identified as an appropriate setting for primary care interventions to improve health and also hence in turn improve workplace productivity .

Keep An Eye Out For Depression

Reduced absenteeism and physical illnesses- According to the WHO, negative working environments may lead to both mental and physical health problems, substance abuse, and productivity loss. This will help them to better support their team and promote healthy practices. Although psychosocial risks can be found in all sectors, some workers are more likely to be exposed to them than others, because of what they do or where and how they work. Health, humanitarian or emergency workers often have jobs that carry an elevated risk of exposure to adverse events, which can negatively impact mental health. At work, risks to mental health, also called psychosocial risks, may be related to job content or work schedule, specific characteristics of the workplace or opportunities for career development among other things.

Every employee should be able to express themselves and feel as though they are important and heard. An employee should have an opportunity throughout the work week to be open and honest with their employer and colleagues.

This gives employees and employers the benefit of having more robust and actionable mental health programs at work. As one corporate wellness program points out, “it’s also about preventing lost time due to absenteeism, stress, and illness. These issues cost many companies far more money than traditional healthcare costs”. Although great employee morale is, in itself, the biggest benefit for companies, preventing foreseeable problems like these is also important. While it will vary from person to person, employee wellbeing should average out to a level that allows for a productive and healthy workplace.

Globalisation And Workplace Mental Health

Both mind and body needed soothing, and HR professionals took the lead in providing solutions to workers. More than two years after the start of the pandemic, they are continuing to enhance their offerings. When it comes to promoting well-being at work, creating proactive options that help people improve and maintain their mental health day-to-day is key to helping employees flourish. Here are some proactive options to promote mental well-being at work, both as an employer and as an employee.

• We will periodically assess workplace stress through appropriate surveys conducted ethically.
• They each make a unique impact on the life of an employee and combine to amplify performance.
• In fact, 61% of U.S. workers say that personal wellbeing and work-life balance are “very important,” citing them as the second-most-important factor in their decision about switching jobs.
• Organizational interventions include, for example, providing flexible working arrangements, or implementing frameworks to deal with violence and harassment at work.
• When employees follow a routine of eating healthy and exercising regularly, they tend to be more productive, energized, and feel encouraged to be proactive with their work.

Lack of job control can make an employee feel incompetent and gradually contributes to stress, anxiety, and depression. Alongside, organizations need to create roles with more fluidity and autonomy. A new research from Journal of Applied Psychology revealed that when an individual is given little control over their work – it greatly impacts their mental health. A highly demanding job combined with micromanagement imposes a burden on an employee’s physical health too.

Address Wellbeing And Improve Employee Engagement And Experience

Poor communication and practices, on the other hand, create strain on the relationship, create poor mental health, and increase workplace stress. All in all, the mental health and well-being of your employees should be a priority in your company. By going the extra mile and listening to the needs of your employees, your support will have a considerably positive effect on your retention rate, company culture, and brand image. Supported employment initiatives help people with severe mental health conditions to get into paid work and maintain their time on work through continue to provide mental health and vocational support. More than half the global workforce works in the informal economy , where there is no regulatory protection for health and safety.

This has led to the exploitation of employees who are not rewarded financially and are often victims of cost-cutting by their employers, leading to them working in hazardous conditions . In many developing countries, occupational health is not a significant government priority and hence the beneficiaries of globalisation are able to continue to exploit these vulnerable workers .