More employees focus on their mental health status at work, and studies prove it. According to 2021 survey, Millennials and Generation Z are making mental wellbeing at work a priority for them. Have you heard of quiet quitting? Workers are taking care of their mental well by ensuring they are not overworked.
Did you know 81% of Gen Z individuals and 68% of Millennials have left roles for mental wellbeing reasons in 2020, and it’s known as the great resignation?
Businesses are realising they can do more to support their staff, and whatever they choose to do also needs to be an HR management policy to change the company culture. Work ethic is not realised by staff working longer hours but working smarter and more productively. Upper management can communicate why the business needs employee satisfaction and how they plan to prioritise it.
Securing new hires and retaining top talent can be achieved when a business proves employee wellbeing is a core focus of the organisation. How can your business show it cares about the mental health of its workers? Let’s find out.
Flexible Work Arrangements
Flexibility is, in this case, one of the employees’ main interests as regards their place of work and working hours. Based on APA’s 2021 Work and Well-being Survey, 34% of workers believe that flexible hours would benefit their psychological health.
Your business showing it is flexible is what matters first and foremost. You don’t need to give staff everything or precisely what they wish; just show you are willing to consider a change for improvement.
Providing employees with options regarding work arrangements and continuing the conversation meets their expectations and improves their perception of the business culture. Communicating and setting norms based on their particular needs and expectations.
A 2021 Gallup poll revealed full-time working from home is not ideal and people want to balance some time at home with time in the workplace. Hybrid work can bring a bunch of upsides for individuals with mental health challenges and family responsibilities like caregiving. What we’re really talking about here is work-life harmony.
Mental Health Training
Engaging a psychologist or trained mental health professional to provide company-wide training is one of the most helpful methods to promote employee mental wellbeing. Diversity equality and inclusion policies insist on destigmatising differences, and the topic of DEI is covered in more detail further on in this article.
Team discussion and training sessions on the importance of emotional health and reducing anxieties while working will improve teamwork and the company culture.
Businesses can promote their commitment with discussions on employee wellbeing concerns, and encourage staff to recognise when they are not feeling like they should so a problem can be resolved before it gets worse.
Productive conversations about conditions like chronic stress, anxiety, and depression will help people have a clearer picture of their actual status in your organisation.
Furthermore, suppose one of your employees develops a mental health condition due to your organisation’s negligence in providing them with adequate training or resources. In that case, you may be guilty in the eyes of the law. Employees have the right to claim compensation for a personal injury (including a mental health problem) if their employer fails to take care of them.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Experiences of inequity and discrimination at the workplace can cause considerable stress among employees struggling to keep pace with the current situation. Not all organisations have a DEI policy. As hard as it is to believe there are companies and organisations not valuing diversity and inclusion and thus cause their workers to face serious self-esteem and mental health problems.
Diversity will eventually be a mandatory undertaking in all businesses. When workers of various talents and socioeconomic backgrounds unite their forces, the result can only be positive. So, ensure you support people of a race other than yours or another gender, not only for ethical but also for company development reasons.
Stress-Relieving Activities
Work-related tasks are, indeed, mandatory, but there can be room for some stress-relieving fun too. Apart from team-building training, you can also use break-out activities, such as yoga sessions and indoor and outdoor games, to help staff take a real break from their work.
Ensure you include the entire team in what activities are welcomed. Yoga, for example, can minimise stress and release tension, but not everyone wants to do yoga, especially with their colleagues.
Break-out activities may include
- Adult colouring books
- Playing musical instruments
- Board games and puzzles
- Knitting (yes, men do knit too)
Summing Up
To attract new workers and retain the staff you have, focus on initiatives that prove your business cares about their mental wellbeing. Avoid your staff quiet-quitting. Paying a healthy salary is commendable but it’s no longer enough to get employee buy-in so your business can grow and thrive.