Creating a Culture of Wellbeing & Respect: Engaging Employees in Workplace Mental Health Promotion Efforts

Involving Employees in Mental Health Promotion Efforts

There are many ways that organizations can engage employees in mental health promotion efforts. Programs and activities directed toward employees should support efforts to reduce stigma associated with help-seeking and mental health conditions and enhance connectedness in the workplace and in the community. Workplaces can engage employees in mental health promotion in the following ways:

• Develop a ‘Workplace Wellness’ committee to support the planning and implementation of a comprehensive approach to workplace health and culture.

• Create policies that support emotional wellness. Create guidelines for job accommodations ranging from formal to informal/temporary (i.e., allow employees to allot time during business hours to participate in therapy and other mental health programs).

• Promote mental and behavioral health as part of overall corporate wellness campaigns.

• Invite speakers from the community to staff meetings or provide opportunities for employees to learn more about mental health (i.e., Lunch & Learns).

• Provide educational training for managers to learn more about mental health conditions and available resources (i.e., Employee Assistance Programs).

• Offer employees mental health tools to educate them on health plans, coverage, and EAP.

• Raise awareness for how employees can contribute to organizational culture by talking about wellness, mental health and safety in the workplace.

• Share information on a variety of health-related topics including stress management, emotional intelligence, sleep hygiene, work/life coordination, and communication skill building. Utilize employee talents to create posters, brochures, bulletin boards, etc.

• Highlight local events and community resources related to mental health and encourage employee engagement.

As organizations begin to take more proactive approaches to identifying and managing mental health problems among their employees, these efforts must be rooted in a workplace culture that is supportive of employees in treatment for mental health conditions. Successful culture shifts take a comprehensive approach to health that may include changes to the work environment to encourage healthy behaviors in multiple domains of health.

Conclusion

Key features of mental health promotion and programming for workplaces include reducing stigma associated with mental health distress and help seeking, improving access to mental health services such as EAP, and engaging employees in supporting workplace mental health promotion efforts. These efforts not only provide a pathway to elevate overall workforce mental health, but have the added potential to contribute to greater employee engagement and to the financial bottom line of an organization.

Check This Out: Top Employee Recognition Solution Companies