• to increase the presence of mental health professionals at the workplace itself sectors: unions, pension insurance
• to stimulate and support employers’ creativity at the workplace sector: state occupational health
• wherever possible, to adjust requirements of a specific job to individual characteristics of a worker sector: state occupational health
• to stimulate the organisation of work into 8-hour working days in order to support family life and leisure activities, rather than to stimulate and praise additional working hours
sector: state occupational health
• to educate employers, employees and unemployed on mental health issues sectors: labour (gov.), health insurance, employers, occupational medicine
• to perform comprehensive, non-superficial analysis of needs as well as support and resources for mental health protection
sector: social (gov.)
• to promote and implement only those good practice examples that have been evaluated based on outcome indi-cators and are efficient in both health and financial sense
sector: health (gov.)
• to develop employment programmes for social inclusion of people with various kinds of disabilities sector: pension insurance
• to improve employers-employees communication sector: pension insurance
• to raise the level of coordination and responsibility sectors: health (gov.), labour (gov.), employers
• to offer early support and individual approach sector: health insurance
• personality development sector: labour (gov.)
3.2 Support for employees affected by mental health problems 3.2.1 Strengths
Cluster Legal framework
• strategies and legislation protecting rights of people with mental health problems sectors: health (gov.), labour (gov.), unions, occupational medicine
Cluster Professional expertise
• available health care professionals and services sector: health (gov.)
Cluster Implementation and practice
• measures of re-socialization are being developed sector: occupational medicine
Cluster Awareness (sub-cluster implementation and practice)
• attention paid to the problem lately sector: labour (gov.)
3.2.2 Weaknesses
Cluster Professional expertise
• uneducated management sector: social (gov.)
Cluster Implementation and practice
• jobs / working conditions are inadequate for people affected by mental health problems, which is further wors-ened by high general unemployment rate
sectors: labour (gov.), unions, pension insurance, state occupational health
• problems are recognized too late sector: state occupational health
• insufficient coordination with other sectors sector: health (gov.)
• employees left on their own, often excluded from working process, penalized because of their problems sector: pension insurance
• mental health problems often misused as excuse for absenteeism or to solve social / existential issues sector: academic
• lack of support / cooperation by employers and employees sector: pension insurance
Cluster Economy / Finances (sub-cluster implementation and practice)
• weak national economy sector: occupational medicine
• insufficient financial resources for supportive measures sector: pension insurance
Cluster Awareness (sub-cluster implementation and practice)
• social exclusion and disrespect sectors: labour (gov.), health insurance
• insufficient awareness of the importance of this issue sector: occupational medicine
• low level of knowledge about mental health problems among employers and employees sector: state occupational health
• stigma
sectors: social (gov.), occupational medicine
3.2.3 Opportunities
Cluster Implementation and practice
• to better coordinate the social security and employment sector i.e. to establish a formal system (define proce-dures, providers...) that would support employees affected by mental health problems and provide conditions for them to stay employed
sectors: labour (gov.), employers, occupational medicine
• to develop procedures for better individual support in keeping jobs sector: health insurance
• part time jobs sector: unions
• active vacations, physical exercise sector: state occupational health
• to support direct contact of mental health professionals and employers of persons with mental health problems sector: state occupational health
• implementing only evaluated (outcome indicators) practices sector: labour (gov.)
Cluster Economy / Finances (sub-cluster implementation and practice)
• make better use of EU funding in this area sector: labour (gov.)
Cluster Awareness (sub-cluster implementation and practice)
• to better inform employees about the risk and how to maintain and protect mental health sector: state occupational health
• education (mental health literacy) from early age (families and schools) to improve awareness and understanding sector: health insurance
3.2.4 Threats
Cluster Implementation and practice
• low intersectoral coordination sector: labour (gov.)
• support only formal sector: occupational medicine
Cluster Economy / Finances (sub-cluster implementation and practice)
• insufficient financial resources
sectors: health (gov), labour (gov.), pension insurance, employers, occupational medicine
Cluster Awareness (sub-cluster implementation and practice)
• discrimination on many levels sector: health insurance
3.2.5 Recommendations for improving support for employees affected by mental health problems
• to educate both employers and employees on mental health issues and possibilities for people affected by mental health problems to stay employed
sectors: employers, unions
• more flexibility – to make it possible for people affected by mental health problems to combine work and sick-leave in order to support treatment and return to the world of employment
sectors: labour (gov.), unions
• raising flexibility of working conditions respecting both employers’ and employees’ needs sector: pension insurance
• organizing jobs / working conditions for people affected by mental health problems so that the tasks are more easi-ly achieved (positive reinforcement is therapeutical)
sector: health insurance
• taking care of employees’ attitude (questionnaires etc.) sector: state occupational health
• to establish intervention teams as support sector: health (gov.)
• to focus on solutions rather than on problems sector: health insurance
• increase support to keep people with mental health problems employed sector: pension insurance
• combating stigma
sectors: health insurance, public health, occupational medicine
• raising awareness and health literacy
sectors: labour (gov.), public health, pension insurance, occupational medicine
3.3 Summary
There is a consensus for almost all aspects of the relevant fields of action, as well as recommendations, according to actors involved. The only differing point of view was the legal framework for promotion and protection of health at workplaces where a representative from pension insurance finds it of poor quality whereas representatives of employers, unions, labour (governmental), and the academic sector find it to be of good quality.
The most important assessed strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities, as well as recommendations are as follows: