The Struggle to Maintain Mental Health in the Workplace
In the article, The Future of Mental Health at Work is Safety, Community, and a Healthy Organizational Culture by Berni Wong and Kelly Greenwood (link below), they discuss the ways in which we have brought about change for mental health in the workplace but also ways we continue to struggle. There are many advantages coming from increased mental health awareness, however this article explores the idea that many of these changes are a “quick fix” to what is actually needed in today’s workplace culture.
The writers identified that mental health awareness overall has encouraged people to re-evaluate what is important to them in life, however this has led to popular trends like “quiet quitting” and the “Great Resignation” rather than making lasting changes in the workplace. The article uses a study by Mind Share Partners showing that although this is beneficial, workers want mentally healthier work cultures, not just self-help resources.
Currently, many employers have implemented new ideas such as mental health days, meditation apps, and encouraging therapy but these maintain the idea that mental health is for everyone to deal with outside of work. Again, taking the stance that it is a “you” not an “us” problem. This goes against what many employees have been saying they need: A healthy workplace culture. This continued opinion that mental health matters, on your own time, allows employers to essentially put a band aid over a bullet hole and that’s what this article aims to expose.
Mind Share asked its respondents what is most important to them:
Mental health treatment
Self-care resources for mental health
A safe and supportive culture for mental health
A healthy and sustainable culture of work
In this study, 78% respondents said a healthy and sustainable work culture was the most important and 67% said a safe and supportive culture making it second most important. These findings help us show it is no longer just about awareness, it’s about imbedding this idea into the workplace.
The article identifies 5 key strategies to help workplaces do this:
Collectively re-envision a mentally healthy workplace
Enable culture change from top down to bottom up
Explore root cause solutions alongside wellness perks
Recommit to the foundation of work itself
Stay the course on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
When reading the article, it was clear that although big steps have been made it will take a conscious act of employers to take the final step in imbedding mental health into our workplaces. When mental health is supported by all in the workplace it’s benefits could then potentially be seen in all areas of life. People will have the financial stability to fully invest in their families, the confidence to ask for what they need when they need it and could decrease mental health symptoms as well as high turnover rates and increase productivity.
When we look at it as an “us” problem rather than a “you” problem we can start to fully understand the benefits of it. Until then, we continue to fall onto studies like this that give us hope for the future of workplace culture. We see that although we have collectively made incredible steps, it takes more than just talking about it. It takes everyone in - all positions - coming together to fully support mental health in the workplace.
Read the full article here: The Future of Mental Health at Work Is Safety, Community, and a Healthy Organizational Culture (hbr.org)