What can you do about mental health in your workplace? Mental ill-health could be one of the biggest issues to face businesses today, therefore promoting positive mental health is very important. one in four people in the UK will experience some kind of mental health issue over the course of any given year. Leaders are not exempt from MH - At LAMBERT, we have found, that its not just employees that are struggling, it is the business leaders too -therefore our programs help employers support themselves and their employees too. A study by BUPA (2018) confirmed that 68% of business owners themselves suffer from mental ill health. As such, at LAMBERT we encourage leaders to address their own wellbeing as we help their employees i.e. we have them participate in the program too and get them to put in place clear policies and processes to support their whole org. A ‘Mind study’ found that 56% of employers said they would like to do more to improve staff wellbeing, but don't feel they have the right training or guidance. This is why we do what we do. ‘Culture of fear’ - Similarly, the research undertaken by ‘MIND’ confirmed how a ‘culture of fear’ and silence around mental health is very costly to employers: · More than one in five (21 per cent), when asked how workplace stress had affected them agreed that they had called in sick to avoid work · 42 per cent had considered resigning when asked how workplace stress had affected them and 14 per cent stated that they had already resigned · sadly 30 per cent of staff said that they would not feel able to talk openly with their line manager if they were feeling stressed’ ‘Culture of silence’ - To help everyone achieve their full potential within an organisation, there are certain areas that need to be addressed -especially around the link of mental ill health and career progression. As this could be contributing to a ‘culture of silence’ -around mental ill health itself. Equality - So, there’s currently no discrimintation against age/gender/ethnicity/disability/sexual orientation but this needs to be the case for mental health history too. Throughout our wellness programs, we assess employees, and often find that their perceptions of unequal access to career progression opportunities were attributed to mental health -and likewise this affected their chance of being selected for a job. Based on everything iv’e just previously mentioned, employers are now realising that they ‘need to do more’ to promote a mentally healthy workplace, because even if you don’t struggle with mental ill health personally, you’ll likely know at least one person who will. The no’s are high -& climbing. When we implement wellness programs for organisations, we find that those struggling with mental ill health is mainly due to BOTH a ‘personal’ and a ‘professional’ standpoint. That’s why our work-life programs are so successful, and creating awareness is key -but there is always more that can be done. That’s why we get businesses to put support mechanisms in place to help, so that they can promote mentally healthy workplaces. Advances in technology (create a balance with mental health at work and at home) - It’s no surprise that we are an ‘always on’ culture, and as easy as it is to say ‘have a good work-life balance’ – it is harder to achieve AND ‘more than ever before’. This all has an impact on wellbeing and mental health. So, where you wud implement a nutritional detox, a digital detox is just as important -but perhaps on a more regular basis. For e.g. having a ‘no phone Friday’ or for banning the whole org from accessing work emails after working hours or during the weekend etc. What do you do now ref tech? Most of us juggle family and other commitments on an evening and at the weekend, so grounding yourself with them is key to optimal