6 Ways to Support Employees' Mental Health Video

We all have mental health. And you may already know that it can dip from time to time. But if not managed well, poor mental health can have devastating consequences. The effects can even ripple out to family members, or the wider organization of the person affected.

As an employer, you have a duty of care to protect your employees' wellbeing, and to support any worker with a mental illness or poor mental health. With the right care, you can help them feel happy and stay productive at work.

Let's explore how you can do this.

First, you'll need to understand what mental health is. Although similar, the terms mental health and mental illness don't mean the same thing. While mental health refers to a person's state of mind or mental wellbeing, mental illness refers to the diagnosed conditions that affect a person's thoughts or behaviors. Illnesses include serious stress, anxiety, depression, eating disorders, schizophrenia, and dementia. All of these can impact someone's mental health. But you can still suffer from poor mental health if you don't have a mental illness. In some cases, if it's not addressed, poor mental health can manifest into a mental illness.

It can be hard to spot the signs of poor mental health or mental illness, especially because many of the symptoms are internal, or the person affected may attempt to hide them because of stigma. Common warning signs include lack of concentration, increased sick leave, tiredness, pessimism, underperformance, and heightened emotional state or unusual outbursts. Provide your HR team and line managers with mental health training so they can spot the signs of poor mental health in themselves and their team members. Encourage your staff to reach out for support, or seek medical advice if they notice symptoms in themselves or someone else. And, if you spot the signs in yourself, you should do this, too.

Now, let your workforce know that you are committed to supporting their mental health by establishing a mental health policy. Outline how you will educate, train and support your staff. Include details on the support you can offer employees currently experiencing poor mental health, and clear guidance on how to access that support. Make sure you act on these promises.

Next, find out how your workforce feels with a mental health audit. You can send out an anonymous questionnaire or checklist to measure employee satisfaction and sources of stress. Use it to learn what support strategies you need to implement.

Then, use the results of the audit to improve working conditions. This could include everything from installing better lighting in the office, to exploring flexible or hybrid working. It's also a good time to assess people's responsibilities and skills. Excessive workloads and poor management are among the biggest stressors.

Finally, signpost support systems, both internal and external. These could include stress and time-management resources, counseling or therapy services, and mental health first aiders within the organization.

When you provide the right support, and a positive working environment, you'll soon find that this has a positive impact on attendance, retention and productivity.

Learn more about how to support someone's mental health with our article, Supporting a Friend or Co-Worker Suffering From Stress   .