Defining Health, Well-being and mental health
9. BOREDOM / UNDER STIMULATION
What are the strengths and weaknesses of measures currently taken to support employees who are affected by mental health problems?
What future opportunities and threats do you see with re-gard to the support for employees affected by mental health problems?
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES OPPORTUNITIES THREATS / RISKS
Good research Productivity impact Coaching Disengaging – unemployment
What are the strengths and weaknesses of measures currently taken to protect and promote health in work- places, particularly in relation to mental demands?
Looking forward, what do you see as the main opportuni-ties and threats, affecting the protection and promotion of health in workplaces, particularly in relation to mental demands?
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
Occupational Health legislation
Equality legisltation • No resources
• No requirement for
• Return to work interview
Stigma
Wealth of policies and guidance available
Supports / assistance Conviction that people are genuine
Good, positive management can help (if early)
Poor line management (han-dling these issues)
Training and awareness Training could be theory only Budget
EAP – proactive Measuring effectiveness – cost
What are the strengths and weaknesses of measures currently taken to protect and promote health in work- places, particularly in relation to mental demands?
Looking forward, what do you see as the main opportuni-ties and threats, affecting the protection and promotion of health in workplaces, particularly in relation to mental demands?
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
• Eap services
• Policies / procedures
• Legislation / resp / acc
and return to work training • Ongoing stigma
• Not prioritized
Work / life balance
Management open to support • Lack of training at line man-agement level
• Back to work integration
• Training
• Good practice on prevention and promotion in some areas (large organisations / public sector)
• Training / lack of training to deal with mental health problems (fear of tackling)
• No legislation addressing bullying / stress
• Lack of management before crisis (pro-active)
• Training – managing change
• Specialist support (on-site support or access to it exter-nally)
• Mediators
• Regular reviewing / earlier intervention
• Upward feedback, more indi-rect – line manager not deal-ing straight with supervisor
• Discrimination
• Resources / costs
• Lack of time (pressures)
• Change (without ability to compensate)
• Time management
• absenteeism
• Aggravated by sick leave changes etc.
• Good response to incidents
• Not immediate
• Poor change management / consultation
• Spillover of pressures into family life
• Risk management – identify-ing psycho-social risks (more focus on physical)
Increase risks of accidents / conflict
• Considered less committed if take these up
• Less statutory commitments
• Longer term impact if not dealt with
• Lip service but not resourced
• Encourages competition
• Benefit system / welfare
• Discouragement
• Poor transition to new jobs
• Lack of investment in job
• Help temp employees with future prospects
• Guidance produced on Mental Health in the workplace by:
What are the strengths and weaknesses of measures currently taken to protect and promote health in work- places, particularly in relation to mental demands?
Looking forward, what do you see as the main opportuni-ties and threats, affecting the protection and promotion of health in workplaces, particularly in relation to mental demands?
• Guidance produced on Men-tal Health in the workplace by:
• Health Promotions policies and procedures
• Overuse of medication vs psychosocial supports
• Lack of trust by employees re confidentiality, disclosure, stigma
• Lack of self-disclosure
• Different types of training
• Programmes to build work-ers’ resilience to stress
• Lack of specific mental health policies among employers
• Policies are not implemented
• Lack of training or bad quality
• Too narrow / basic need to focus lifestyles as well not widely available
• Equality legislation
• Reasonable accommodation
• Return to work policies
• Flexible work arrangements
• Return to work grant by FAS
• employers not aware that equality legislation applies to mental health
• HR do not know how to deal with mental health issues
• Lack of training for line man-agement
• Lack of community based case management
• Adversarial approach to compensation
• Not being used by employers
• High expectations from management
• Lack of understanding of organisational ethos
• Absence of dedicated team (person) for training and support
Social Welfare / Benefit System / Government Training System
• No support when moving jobs or thinking of moving jobs. Particularly for those on short term contracts or temporary positions
Help insecure (those on short term contracts / temps) employ-ees with up skilling
Recession
Existence of work / life balance policy
Eroded by economic and work-ing conditions
Increased / Introduction of Occ.
Health Services
Overuse of medical model &
lack of solutions on a psycho / social interventions
Good legal framework Not enforced / monitored
What are the strengths and weaknesses of measures currently taken to protect and promote health in work- places, particularly in relation to mental demands?
Looking forward, what do you see as the main opportuni-ties and threats, affecting the protection and promotion of health in workplaces, particularly in relation to mental demands?
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
Mental Health Promotion
Program Lack of engagement by those
who need it – both employees and managers / employers
Referencing Mental Health documents / policies from other jurisdictions & building on them
• Stigma
• Attitude towards mental health
• Societal approach to mental health
Positive organisational culture Lack of trust by employees that information provided will remain confidential
Mental Health / equality training Quality of training is often questionable
Adversarial approach is not beneficial
Equality legislation provides for reasonable accommodation for those with a disability such as mental illness
• Lack of specific policies / policies are over arching
• HR / Employer etc. not aware of inclusion of mental health in this legislation.
• HR / Employer not aware of what “reasonable accommo-dation” is
• No community based return to work services for those out of work due to illness
• New Interdepartmental group set up under remit of Dept. of Health
• Need to work together (multi agency approach)
Wealth of policy / procedure /
guidance material Lack of consistent application
of policy Early intervention / knowledge of
managers Stigma of early disclosure
General awareness of mental health issues in society has increased
• Organisations understanding of issues vary
• Absence of training for direct managers
• Portraying benefits of provid-ing support and assistance to managers / employers
• Positive managers with un-derstanding of Mental Health issues
• Organisational culture particularly around validity of claims
• Personal ownership by employee environ-ment can cause important areas to slip out of priority
The realization by organisations of the win-win that exists for individuals and employers when employees health and well-be-ing is considered
Fear of making a situation worse
Concerted stigma reduction measures in the national press including a specific focus on the workplace
Fear of the unknown, a lot of unease and uncertainty about
“mental health”
The realization of the benefits for individuals and employers when people feel it is safe to disclose a mental health difficulty precedence at a given time
Multiple challenges for all citizens in all aspects of work and non-working life which add to demands
What would be your three most important recommendations for improving the protection and promotion of health in workplaces, particularly in relation to mental demands?
Awareness raising campaigns to provide individuals with the tools to support and maintain their mental health and well-being and promo-tion of individual responsibility for own mental health and well-being using the tools at their disposal
Management training to ensure managers are in a position to support their teams and the balance of mental demands Open communication and culture to enable discussion when there are difficulties before they become major issues
What are the strengths and weaknesses of measures currently taken to protect and promote health in work- places, particularly in relation to mental demands?
Looking forward, what do you see as the main opportuni-ties and threats, affecting the protection and promotion of health in workplaces, particularly in relation to mental demands?
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
Measures have tended to take various forms such as aware-ness raising campaigns of the importance of looking after your mental health and well-being – these have helped open up communication with a shared language
Fear of disclosure in the work-place according to research ap-pears to still be a major concern for some employees
Greater awareness around this topic and its prevalence is focusing employers’ minds on the topic. At 2 recent seminars we ran on mental health, very limited promotion filled the events
Many employers feel over-whelmed by the topic and unclear where to start or what to do
Some have engaged in campaigns explaining where assistance is available e.g. EAP or HR – this has had the benefit of stigma reduction and again opening up communication in the workplace
Measures not communicated well to employees
Promotion of the business case for addressing such problems early could encourage greater participation
A fear of “opening a can of worms” can hinder the initiation of any supports
Others have provided training for line managers or HR person-nel on supporting individuals with mental health problems – this has been invaluable as it deals with the often irrational fear factor felt by individuals feeling ill-equipped
Concern on behalf of employers of what may emerge if too open regarding this topic
Initiatives such as this Joint Action on Mental Health and Well-beeing and strategies such as See Change’s stigma reduc-tion campaigns
Partial supports but against a back-drop of poor communica-tion / unsupportive culture
Development of tools and supports for employers could facilitate greater dissemination of supports for employees and attend to the concerns of em-ployers who feel helpless with regards mental health
What would be your three most important recommendations for improving the protection and promotion of health in workplaces, particularly in relation to mental demands?
Have a clear policy and procedure communicated to all staff and managers regarding how one engages with whatever supports are available from the employer and who to approach. This would take some of the “unknown” out of the situation for all concerned and may encourage disclosure
Training and guidance in particular for line managers regarding supporting their teams in the case of a mental health difficulty, what steps they need to take to access employer supports and where they need to go for assistance
Communication and open discussion around mental health and well-being