MENTAL HEALTH & STRESS
LIFE-CHANGING CONVERSATIONS
Although mental health has become a corporate priority in Britain, we are
still at the beginning of the journey in terms of changing people’s attitudes. Yet, every day more help becomes available, both at organisational and individual level, says Mike Robinson, Chief Executive of the British Safety Council.
“Hello, how are you?” has become the standard greeting when seeing someone for the first time that day. Almost always the response is: “I’m OK, thanks. Even when it is plainly obvious that the person is not well. How many of us follow that answer with “Are you sure? Can I help you?” That simple enquiry and acknowledgement of our concern for someone’s wellbeing can make a difference, potentially even saving someone’s life. However, most people would feel uncomfortable if a person responded honestly with “I’m feeling terrible, thanks.”
One of the main challenges of dealing with mental ill-health is the stigma associated with it, which makes it difficult for people to admit that they are affected. Talking about mental health is one of the ways of addressing this stigma.
Employers are responsible for their workers’ health and wellbeing and encouraging conversations relating to mental health is the first step towards dealing with the stigma.
An indication of the current situation is the 2017 PWC survey of UK workers that showed that 40% of employees don’t feel comfortable raising a mental health issue with a colleague or manager. Perhaps it’s not surprising that 300,000 people with long-term mental health problems lose their jobs every year according to the Thriving at Work report. The consequences can be tragic: every week, more than 100 people take their own lives in the UK.
Yet, improving employees’ mental health has huge benefits for organisations and their business performance. Mental ill-health expresses itself in poor productivity, increased staff turnover, absenteeism and presenteeism. In 2017, one in ten managers took an average of 12 days off work for mental health reasons.
On an individual level, the reasons for tacking ill-mental health are equally compelling. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development research showed that 37% of sufferers are more likely to get into conflict with colleagues, 57% find it harder to juggle multiple tasks, 80% find it difficult to concentrate, 62% take longer to do tasks and 50% are potentially less patient with customers and clients.
Fortunately, mental health has become one of the corporate priorities in Britain, when the prime minister commissioned a review into workplace mental health. Its recommendations were published in November 2017 in the report Thriving at Work. Its analysis shows that around 15% of people at work have symptoms of and existing mental health conditions. Other sources provide
26
even more startling statistics. According to Mind, one in four employees in the UK has a mental health problem.
Recognising the magnitude of the problem and its human cost, the British Safety Council has launched a range of mental health training courses which are designed to start conversations about mental health and support employees who are experiencing mental ill-health.
The British Safety Council’s ‘Start the Conversation’ is a 45-minute session which aims to get employees thinking about mental wellbeing and talking about it. The next stage is a three-hour ‘Manage the Conversation’ workshop to give line managers the skills and confidence to listen to and talk with someone who needs to share a problem regarding their mental wellbeing. The British Safety Council also offers the two-day Mental Health First Aid course, developed by Mental Health First Aid England, which teaches people how to identify, understand and help someone who may be experiencing a mental health issue.
In the coming months, the British Safety Council will be working with its partners in the industry and the leading mental health charities on dispelling the stigma that surrounds mental ill-health. It will also continue developing new training tools and guidance that will benefit companies of all sizes and their employees.
www.britsafe.org www.tomorrowshs.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56
