Recognize mental health as an essential pillar of workplace safety
Mental health remains a neglected and stigmatized subject in the workplace, and this neglect jeopardizes the well-being of employees and endangers businesses.
Prioritizing mental health in the workplace is crucial for safety and overall well-being. It encompasses emotional, psychological and social aspects of health, influencing the thoughts, emotions, actions, stress management, relationships and decision-making of individuals, all essential elements in a work environment. Currently, 1 in 5 adults are struggling with mental health issues, indicating that the majority of businesses have felt the effects to some extent. Despite this impact, mental health still often remains a neglected and stigmatized topic in the workplace. This oversight not only jeopardizes the well-being of employees, but also poses risks to the business itself.
Mental health may seem like a more personal matter for employees, but many variables can carry over into the workplace and vice versa. For example, remote working has been shown to improve employee well-being by reducing commute time and allowing people to spend more time with their families at home. Yet it has also created increased feelings of burnout and isolation by blurring the lines between people’s work and personal lives. Actually, 23 percent of employees today experience loneliness due to remote working and 77 percent experienced signs of burnout.
Managing mental health at work does not follow a one-size-fits-all formula. However, several common mistakes persist in many businesses today. These include perpetuating societal stigmas around mental health, viewing mental health solely as the responsibility of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) or Human Resources (HR) and, most notably , to relegate “psychological health” to secondary importance compared to physical health and safety. . Addressing these challenges is crucial to creating safer workplaces, requiring a collaborative effort between EHS and HR professionals, and allowing for a deeper appreciation of the importance of psychological health and safety.
Let’s see what it looks like.
