MENTAL HEALTH A MAJOR WORRY FOR WORKERS

Mind, the UK leading mental health charity conducted a survey of over 44,000 employees and found that poor mental health is endemic in the workplace with 48% of the 44,000 workers surveyed revealed that they had suffered with poor mental health in their current job.

In collaboration with Mind, the Duke of Cambridge has launched online Mental Health as a Gateway to help businesses improve the health and wellbeing of their staff.

What’s probably more worrying I that only about half of the employees surveyed who had suffered with mental health issues had discussed this with their employer, which suggests that roughly 25% of UK employees are suffering in silence.

The mental health ‘gateway’ was launched last week by the Duke of Cambridge to provide a UK-wide portal that helps employers and employees with free resources including advice and guidance, information and training.

HR Heroes in depth analysis of the survey reveals that managers who have been provided with greater support and training are able to make a greater difference with their staff.  It was also clear that managers who had received better training and support felt more confident in promoting health and wellbeing with their staff and were able to approach staff whom they felt were showing signs of poor mental health. Employees were also more likely to open up to their manager about mental health issues if they felt their manager had some knowledge, training or experience in the field.

Paul Farmer, Chief Executive of Mind, said:

“We are really proud to be involved in this piece of work, which offers a one-stop shop for anyone looking to improve mental wellbeing in their workplace and support staff with mental health problems. We know that employers want to do more and are starting to see mental health as a priority, but often don’t know where to start. The new online Mental Health at Work gateway will change that.

High street retailer WHSmith has done a huge amount around workplace wellbeing after Alison Garbutt, the retailer’s Head of Strategic Projects, sought support for her colleagues following the suicide of a co-worker. She realised that she, and others around her, did not know how to approach conversations about mental health.