As an employer how do you look after the emotional and mental well being of your workforce? It’s a tricky question and one possibly better framed from the perspective of the employee
What do you need from your employer to enable you to manage your emotional and mental well being?
Recent work that we have done in this arena has thrown up six essential requirements:
- Trust and faith that it is OK not to be OK
- A safe space (physical, mental or virtual)
- Knowledge of what is and what isn’t available from the organisation
- Information about help available “out there”
- Managers who understand or at least are willing to try to understand
- Total commitment from the top
Building an environment where the organisation is and is seen to be positive about mental health takes time, commitment and enthusiasm. Interestingly it needs little if anything in the way of money and is likely to result in cost savings.
The compassionate employer will create this kind of environment because it is the way of loving kindness. The less altruistic employer may simply see it as a way of increasing output, enhancing productivity and reducing absenteeism. Either way it’s a win:win all round.
Interspiral 