Develop programs and policies that support employee mental health
Enhancing your employees’ mental well-being is a talent management issue. It requires strategic investments of time and money. And the steps you take to better support your employees at work can empower them to thrive in other areas of their lives, thus ensuring the long-term health and success of your employees and your organization.
Here are additional steps you can take to improve employee mental health.
Take your EAP a step further
To maximize employee engagement in the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and encourage positive outcomes, regularly audit your EAP to ensure you are providing the maximum benefit for your workers. This includes evaluating your EAP providers to verify they follow best practices and draw on current research.
Consider launching a cross-departmental benefits committee to review EAP offerings and ensure a diverse group of mental health professionals is enlisted to meet the needs of employees with different identities and backgrounds. Ask the benefits committee to find creative ways to remove the stigma around seeking mental health services and encourage employees to take advantage of EAP offerings. This is an opportunity to give employees a voice and then directly respond to their needs.
Use multiple methods to communicate to employees what services the EAP provides, what topics EAP professionals can cover (i.e., stress, mental health, finances, family issues), and that EAP services are available and confidential. It’s important to use messaging that normalizes the use of mental health benefits and to remove any possible barriers for employees.
Rethink how you promote your EAP, so information is easy to find and understand. AI-driven survey tools can guide your employees to appropriate resources for their unique scenarios. Remove barriers by ensuring flexibility so employees can use EAP services during the workday and not be penalized for prioritizing their mental health.
Coach your managers and supervisors on how to use well-being resources offered through the EAP so they are well-equipped to promote EAP resources.
Offer Mental Health First Aid training to all employees
Just as CPR helps people assist someone having a heart attack, Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) can help managers and supervisors assist someone experiencing a mental health or substance use challenge or crisis.
MHFA is an evidence-based training administered by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing that teaches people how to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health issues and substance use challenges.
MHFA is not just for leaders and managers. Offering MHFA training to all employees equips your entire organization with mental health knowledge and fosters empathy and understanding.
Instill a sense of belonging for employees of all backgrounds
Fostering a welcoming and inclusive workplace helps employees feel a sense of belonging and contributes to a healthy work culture. Taking a multifaceted approach that engages employees across your organization reaffirms your commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) while supporting employee well-being.
You can start by using inclusive terminology. Words matter. To build a common vocabulary, APA introduced the inclusive language guidelines, containing relevant language to use when communicating about EDI.
Employee resource groups (ERG) create a space for underrepresented employees to find one another, share common experiences, and seek advice. Typically organized around a shared identity, such as race, gender, or age, ERGs are a powerful addition to the workplace with many benefits to the organization, including creating greater inclusivity and higher retention of employees.
Recognize and celebrate a variety of identities. Include important cultural and religious days in your organization’s shared calendar. Be mindful of scheduling meetings, deadlines, and events on these days, even if they only impact some employees. Kazoohr.com provides a good starting point of dates to skip when scheduling meetings or events.
Be aware of unconscious bias in your organization and educate your entire team in the importance of EDI initiatives. When you’re training team members about issues that might incite defensiveness, be aware of communication methods that support attitude changes.
Regularly reviewing your organization’s hiring practices and ensuring equitable pay supports EDI and contributes to job satisfaction.
Make sure your efforts are sustainable by promoting team buy-in. People may be more receptive to EDI initiatives when they know it’s a long-term investment in your organization.
Continue evaluating outcomes
With any occupational health intervention, good evaluation design is as important as the right strategies.
Establish a baseline by surveying employees before you launch new programs, and be sure to implement tools for measuring progress, such as further employee surveys and focus groups.
Keep channels of both bottom-up and top-down communication open, whether via email, Slack, or Microsoft Teams; ongoing staff conversations with leadership; and/or an employee intranet, and create channels for your managers to regularly share feedback.
Just as important, make changes if you aren’t seeing positive results and as staff needs evolve.
Your employees are the heartbeat of your organization, and your best resource for understanding how to improve the well-being of your business.
References:
https://www.apa.org/topics/workplace/mental-health/develop-programs