How to Sustain Good Mental Health in the Workplace
Today, more than ever, workplaces should focus on supporting and working with any employees that suffer from mental health conditions. Creating a positive workplace with a clear structure and support system can not only help those with pre-existing mental health issues but also ensure that work-related stress issues are avoided where possible.
Spotting the signs
There are general ways to recognise the signs of stress and mental health issues within the workplace which can include; workers appearing anxious and nervous, assessing whether your staff are over-burdened or over capacity with their workload, workers might take more time off or appear tired at work, staff may also start to isolate themselves away from their colleagues or even change their attitude; becoming angry, chaotic and extremely down.
Spotting the signs is the first step in managing mental health in the workplace and can be imperative in supporting your staff.
Supporting staff
Being an open, caring leader within the workplace will ensure that your staff or fellow colleagues feel they can be open about their mental health and issues they are facing. If your colleagues or employees feel they cannot talk about their issues or feel they will be reprimanded, they are more likely to suffer more and potentially take time off of work with mental health-related issues.
Fear of discrimination is a huge part of why staff do not open up about their mental health issues, which is why it is important to create a workplace culture which supports staff and offers branches for them to take when they feel they need support.
Managing Stress
In a hectic work environment, it can be hard to not put pressure on staff, especially in circumstances where you are understaffed or there is higher workload. However, managing the stress and mental health issues of staff whilst they are at work will ensure that they feel safer at work and not overworked, overwhelmed or underappreciated.
Small changes can be made to ensure that staff do not have to take time off for work. These can include allowing staff to work from home once a month, so they feel less overwhelmed in their environment or allowing staff to opt out of certain events where they may feel uncomfortable.
Putting structures in place whether this is guidance in performance management documents or management training can also ensure that higher staff are properly trained in how to deal with stress and mental health.
Support returns to work
Unfortunately, even if you’ve taken steps within the workplace to support your staff’s mental health, they may still have to take time off. Allowing this time off to deal with their issues and overcome any hurdles they may currently have will ensure that colleagues return to work feeling a bit less overwhelmed.
Offering support when they are off work and when they return, understanding their issues and creating a strategy to work around their issues can ensure that they do not need to have time off again.
Sereniti can provide guidance and training on how to manage mental health in the workplace using a range of wellbeing services with expert consultants. Contact us today for more information.