MENTAL HEALTH IN THE WORKPLACE: ORGANIZATIONAL FACTORS AND - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

MENTAL HEALTH IN THE WORKPLACE: ORGANIZATIONAL FACTORS AND RESOURCES ESDC OPEN HOUSE 2015 Andrew Harkness Strategy Advisor, Organizational Health Initiatives Workplace Safety and Prevention Services

Agenda  Mental Health as a workplace concern  Understanding the Organizational Factors  Resources: – Guarding Minds@Work – On the Agenda – Managing Mental Health Matters – Working Through It – Mental Health First Aid  Gauging Organizational Readiness

One in Five • One in 5 Canadians will experience a mental problem or illness in any given year. • On any given week, at least 500,000 employed Canadians are unable to work due to mental illness.” • Every year mental illnesses costs the Canadian economy an estimated $51 billion (at least) annually in absenteeism, disability claims, and medical services used.

One in Five 34-million ( people in Canada 2011) 7-million will experience a mental health issue

A Standard is Born ‐ CSA ‐ Z1003 • Released in January, 2013 • More than 25,000 downloads to date • Accessible for free for the first five years from CSA and BNQ. • First of its kind in the world

The Standard – Guiding Principles • Shared responsibility and active participation among all workplace stakeholders • Demonstrated and visible commitment from senior management • Integrate PHS into organizational decision making • Focus on health, safety, awareness and promotion

Thirteen Workplace Factors Psychological Clear Organizational Civility & Psychological & Social Leadership & Culture Respect Demands Support Expectations Growth & Recognition & Involvement & Workload Engagement Development Reward Influence Management Psychological Protection of Balance Protection Physical Safety

1.Organizational Culture  Is a mix of norms, values, beliefs, meanings and expectations that group members hold in common and use as behavioural and problem ‐ solving cues  A psychologically healthy and safe work culture is characterized by trust, honesty, respect, civility and fairness  Values psychological and social support, recognition and reward

2. Psychological & Social Support  Refers to the degree of social and emotional integration and trust among co ‐ workers and supervisors  Considers the level of help and assistance provided by others when performing tasks  Employees perceive their organization: – Values their contributions – Is committed to ensuring their psychological well ‐ being – Provides meaningful supports if this well ‐ being is compromised

3.Clear Leadership & Expectations  There is support that helps employees know: – What they need to do – How their work contributes to the organization  Transformational leaders are: – Change agents who motivate to do more than what is expected – Concerned with long ‐ term objectives – Transmit a sense of mission, vision and purpose – Have charisma and inspire workers – Give individualized consideration to their employees – Stimulate intellectual capabilities in others

4.Civility & Respect  Workers are respectful and considerate in their interactions with one another, as well as with customers, clients and the public  Show esteem, care and consideration for others, and acknowledge their dignity

5.Psychological Demands  Psychological demands are documented and assessed in conjunction with the physical demands of the job  Organizations minimize risks associated with identified job hazards through work redesign, analysis of work systems and risk assessment  Assessments consider time stressors, breaks, incentive systems, job monotony, repetitive nature of tasks, overtime hours and shiftwork

6.Growth & Development  Workers receive encouragement and support in the development of their interpersonal, emotional and job skills  Organizations provide internal and external opportunities to build competencies that will: • Help with current jobs • Prepare workers for possible future positions

7.Recognition & Reward  Acknowledgement and appreciation of employees’ efforts provided in a fair and timely manner  Celebrate worker or team accomplishments  Recognition of good performance, years served and/or milestones reached

8.Involvement & Influence  Workers included in discussions about how their work is done and how important decisions are made  Opportunities for involvement may include: – Worker’s specific job design or function – Team or department activities – Organizational issues

9.Workload Management  A work environment where assigned tasks and responsibilities can be accomplished successfully with the time available  Biggest workplace stressor ‐ too much to do and not enough time  Not just amount of work but also extent to which workers have the time, equipment and support to do their jobs well

10. Engagement  A work environment where workers enjoy and feel connected to their work  Worker engagement can be physical, emotional and/or cognitive  Engaged workers: ‐ View work as a source of energy ‐ Exhibit a positive job outlook ‐ Devote more attention to work ‐ Can relate to and are committed to the overall success and mission of their organization

11.Balance  Balance in a work environment is the acceptance of the need for harmony between the demands of personal life, family and work  Everyone has multiple roles as workers, parents, partners, etc.  Complexity of roles allows fulfillment of individual strengths and responsibilities  Conflicting responsibilities can lead to role conflict or overload

12.Psychological Protection  Is present where worker psychological safety is ensured and the organization actively promotes emotional well being as well as minimizing threats to worker mental health  Workers feel able to: – Ask questions – Seek feedback – Report mistakes and problems – Propose a new idea – Without fearing negative consequences to themselves, their job or their career

13. Protection of Physical Safety  Is present when a worker’s psychological, as well as physical safety, is protected from hazards and risks related to the worker’s physical work environment  Organization cares about how the physical work environmental impacts mental health  Workers feel safe and get sufficient training to perform safely  Health and safety concerns are taken seriously  Organization assesses the psychological demands of the job and the job environment to determine if it presents a hazard

A new set of tools to assist employers to ASSESS, ADDRESS and EVALUATE psychosocial risks. Evidence ‐ Free Accessible Universal Based Resourced:

ACTION ASSESSMENT  Risk Report Card  Initial Scan EVALUATION  Action Responses  Employer Audit  Evaluation Planning Worksheet  PSR ‐ 13 Employee  Action Planning Survey Worksheet Resourced:

Resource: (GM@W) FAQ  What should we do?  What is it?  What are the resources?  Why was it developed? Dashboard?  Cost of use? Implementation?  Do I need to register to use the  Who can use it? resources?  Who developed it?  Do all employees need to sign in?  What are Organizational  How long do we have to survey? Risk/Psychological Factors?  What about confidentiality?  What are the factors based  What happens to our company on? information?  Is GM@W good for business?  Is there a French Version?  What are the time and resources needed?

Options for employee survey  Can gather and compare information across departments, branches or sites  Can gather and compare information from full time, temporary and shift workers  Can include information on presenteeism and impact on productivity  Can be customized with company logo or additional questions (with consultation and programming cost) Resourced:

Managing Mental Health Matters • "first of its kind" program focused on helping managers, supervisors and other leaders learn how to effectively recognize and manage mental health related issues in the workplace. • Uses a story ‐ based approach, portraying realistic episodes of workplace "characters" dealing with situations common to everyday worklife. • The user engages in the process, rather than simply being given information. • Available through Workplace Strategies for Mental Health Website

Working Through It

Mental Health First Aid • Recognize the signs and symptoms of mental health problems • Identify when a person may be a harm to themselves or others • Provide initial help • Guide a person towards appropriate professional help. • Provide comfort to someone with a mental health problem and support them in the recovery of their mental health

Why MHFA?  Mental health problems are common  Professional help is not always on hand  Members of the public don’t know how to respond  There is stigma associated with mental health problems  Not everyone with mental health problems seeks treatment  People may lack the insight to realize they need help or that help is available  Many people are not well informed

Who Should Take MHFA?  Managers  Co ‐ workers  Human Resources  First Aiders  Front line workers who deal with the public  Safety people  Employers