Employee Well-Being and Mental Health

Does the mental health of employees contribute to the growth of an organization? Should employers come forward to address the most hidden issue of their employees? Which changes can make a difference?

A corporate job can offer a number of benefits. It gives a social status and secures your financial future. But it affects most to your mental well-being. Even mental health professionals agree that the office environment can have a negative impact to your mental wellness. Now the time has come to improve the overall well-being of employees including mental health.

Currently, employers are implementing innovative programs for their employee benefits. These programs include a healthy diet, exercise, sleep, wellness, and stress management to boost the productivity of their employees. Only a few companies are concerned about the mental health of their employees. Before going to the details, first, we should know what mental well-being is.

What is Mental Well-Being?

Mental health covers your emotional, social, and psychological health. It enables you to think and react. According to the WHO, mental well-being is the state of mind that helps people to realize their full potential. It helps people to cope with stress and contribute to the development of an organization. A study conducted by the WHO revealed that around 300 million people across the globe are suffering from depression and 260 million from anxiety.

As employees spend more than half of their waking hours in their workplace, workplace activities affect their mental health significantly. The mental health in the workplace was even the theme of the 2017 World Mental Health Day.

Workplace Mental Health Alarming Statistics

In 2016, an article titled as Psychosocial Safety Climate and Better Productivity in Australian Workplaces: Cost, Productivity, Presenteeism, Absenteeism published in Safe Work Australia says that the psychosocial safety climate (PSC) of the workplace and the mental health of the employees can lead to less productivity and increased absenteeism potentially costing employers around $6 billion per annum.

US employees miss work every day due to mental stress-

• 70% of employees have to work overtime to get ahead
• 69% of employees believe that their work brings a lot of stress into their life
• 51% of employees think that they are not able to perform their best due to their stress

Around 11.5 days are reported to be less productive in every three months for an employee with depression. Also, an estimated 4.8 days are missed in every three months for employees with depression. There are around 200 million lost workdays per year due to depression. And an alarming sixty percent of people do not disclose their mental condition to their employers.

How to Promote Employee’s Mental Well-Being

Employee wellness should be the first concern for managers. There is no doubt that organizations are spending a lot to ensure the well-being of their employees. But their prime focus is on the physical well-being. They offer gym facilities or fitness tracker to monitor their activities. Unfortunately, most organizations are still unable to address mental health.

Employers should take initiatives to promote the mental health of their employees. They can add innovative tools and programs to ensure the mental health of their workforce. A healthy diet, exercise, adequate sleep, stress management, mindfulness, and change in the company culture can help to make a difference. In addition, some changes in organization policy can also contribute to the cause.

Changes in Policies

•  Enforcement of adequate health policies such as banning harmful drug use and identifying the stress triggers
•  A strict policy against racial and sexual harassment
•  Overwork can cause stress and can affect productivity. It is important to prevent the overwork culture to reduce the stress of employees
•  Motivational program to boost mental energy and to refine skills
•  Allowing employees to contribute to the decision-making process

Cultural Changes

• A positive culture to develop bonding and to support each other
• Work and personal life balance by allowing employees to spend only a defined time period in the office and spending quality time with their family to keep them motivated
• Praising and rewarding for their contributions
• Providing help whenever required

Employees’ mental well-being will not only affect their personal and professional life. It can make a difference in the growth and productivity of the company. A healthy mind is important to make your company prosper.

If you are a small business owner in need of human resources services, benefits administration, or insurance, Mercado Insurance Services is here to help. Give us a call today.