How to Support Employees with Mental Health Issues
As an employer, you have a responsibility for the health and wellbeing of your employees as well as ensuring that every member of the team is working at their full potential. Mental health charity Mind says that one in six workers are dealing with mental health problems, including depression, stress and anxiety.
That means depending on the size of your business, there is a good chance that you have someone in your team currently struggling with their mental health in one way or another. Perhaps one of your team has already come to you and you are unsure of the best course of action, or you have suspicions that one or more member of staff’s results are dropping due to outside influences. If so, this blog post aims to help you to manage any employees you may have struggling with mental health issues.
Understanding and Supporting Mental Health in the Workplace
For an employee to feel comfortable discussing issues relating to their mental health, there must be a culture instilled in the workplace where workers know that they will feel supported. It can take a lot for someone to come forward to an employer, potentially fearing they may be stigmatised.
Steps must be put into place so that any member of the team can speak about their mental health. Sending a clear message that any employee’s mental health will be treated in the same manner as their physical health is a good place to start, as well as implementing a strategy and policies surrounding mental health.
It is important to understand that not all mental health problems are the same and how individuals suffering from mental health issues deal with them also differs. There is no one-size-fits-all solution in this respect which is why communication is key.
Talking to Your Employee(s) About Mental Health
You know your team and their personalities, so when someone’s behaviour differs from the norm you are likely to notice it. It could be changes in their mood and/or how they interact with colleagues, their motivation and focus, performance, eating habits and appetite, as well as appearing withdrawn and fatigued.
The manager’s relationship with an employee is important, and how the topic is raised is equally as critical. When managers aren’t comfortable discussing topics surrounding mental health, they may escalate the issue (which could be a non-issue) with HR or someone else. This can make the conversation feel overly formal and possibly make the employee feel as though they are being disciplined. This is why ensuring that there is an avenue for employees to discuss such matters in an equal and non-judgemental fashion is important.
The manager may likely have to take the lead when it comes to opening up a conversation with an employee about their mental health. In this instance, it is important not to be judgemental and not to make assumptions. The manager should speak with them privately away from everyone else – possibly in a meeting room or a neutral place away from the workplace – and ensure complete confidentiality. The individual may be worried that their mental health will become the talk of the workplace if they begin to open up, so some assurance that anything they say will only be shared with those on a need-to-know basis will help to put them at ease.
The conversation should begin by talking about aspects that are definitive, such as absences, performance, or a change in attitude – something that the manager will have concerns about from a commercial perspective. It is ultimately the manager’s responsibility to ensure that the team are working towards hitting commercial targets for the business, therefore being open and honest is a must.
Supporting Employees with Mental Health Problems
As well as maintaining open communication with any member of the team suffering from mental health problems, the business can go further by offering support services – or at least notifying the individual of what is available. Here at WeMa, we offer a 24/7 wellbeing service that your employees can take advantage of. We can offer help such as care, as well as simply providing them with someone to talk to.
Businesses that sign up for our program benefit from being able to offer their employees a dedicated service that can be tailored to their needs. Our goal is to ensure that your members of staff receive the help they need which, in turn, reduces the strain on your business by minimising absenteeism and presenteeism, low morale and poor output. Happy and well looked after employees will look after your businesses.