818.501.4343March 15, 2024
Today’s workplaces are often fast-paced and high-pressure environments. As public dialogue around mental health becomes more normalized, employers must work to accommodate their employees’ needs. Employers that support mental health in the workplace have happier, healthier workers and a more productive workforce.
Considering how to support employee mental health requires taking a close look at a company’s structure, operations, and culture. The key to implementing effective strategies is conducting an in-depth examination of current workplace practices. From there, positive change depends on identifying the strategies that will work best.
Flexible Work Schedules
Flexible work arrangements can have a huge positive impact on employee mental health. A little flexibility can go a long way toward reducing stress and promoting work-life balance, which directly helps improve the mental health of employees.
Work flexibility can be achieved in many different ways. The following are some common options that increasing numbers of employers are offering:
- Remote work
- Blend of in-office and remote hours
- Flexible start and end times
- Non-punitive policies for sick days or childcare issues
- Compressed workweeks
Allowing employees more autonomy over when and where their work is accomplished is one of the most significant ways employers can help reduce work-related stress and support employee mental health.
Additionally, flexible work arrangements often lead to more productive workers. Flexibility helps create a culture where employees feel trusted and respected to do their jobs without micromanagement or constant oversight.
Accessible Mental Health Resources
Ensuring employees have access to mental health resources is another easily implemented strategy that can make a significant difference to the overall mental health of employees. Employers are increasingly working to aid workers — and protect themselves from liability — by offering access to mental health resources such as:
- Health insurance benefits that cover therapy/mental health treatment
- Counseling services
- Mental health hotlines
- Employee assistance programs (EAPs)
- Paid subscriptions to mental health apps
- Webinars or workshops on topics like stress management
These ideas offer concrete support to employees, conveying that the company cares about its employees’ mental health. At the same time, they require minimum cost and effort for the company.
Taking small steps like these ensures that employees have access to helpful resources and places the responsibility for employee mental health into the hands of mental health professionals. Offering these resources is a cost-effective strategy that can go a long way toward ensuring employees who need extra support have access to it.
Forgiving Leave Policies
Offering forgiving leave policies is another highly effective strategy that takes a little toll on an employer’s finances. It also doesn’t require drastic changes to workloads or workplace structure. Struggling to meet work obligations when personal issues crop up is often one of the most significant causes of employee stress.
Employees require leave in a variety of situations. Health conditions and caretaking duties are two common reasons employers must take leave. The responsibilities of parenthood, especially when a child is sick, or a babysitter cancels, can be a significant source of stress when a company has strict policies that make it hard for employees to handle outside obligations.
Employers should work to adjust policies to better support employees’ quality of life. Additional options include offering mental health days, approving absences so employees can attend therapy, and offering phase-in options when an extended leave is related to significant mental health concerns.
Enforced Break Times
At first glance, enforcing break times might seem like unnecessary micromanagement that hurts productively without significantly helping employee mental health. However, it’s important to recognize that improving employee mental health doesn’t always require sweeping structural changes.
Establishing a policy for employee break times and creating a culture that respects and reinforces those breaks is a small step to take, but it can make a significant difference.
For example, a company’s stated break policy might include a 30-minute lunch and two 10-minute breaks. Management can work to enforce the policy that employees should not actively engage in work or even discuss work during those periods.
Creating a culture that encourages employees to take their minds off work throughout the day can guard against employee burnout and ensure that workers have the opportunity to connect, communicate, or simply rest.
Reasonable Workloads
Many workplace strategies that support mental health can involve minor changes. However, others may include taking a more comprehensive look at operations and company culture.
Employers seeking to support their employees’ mental health can’t avoid looking at workloads, employee expectations, and the toll those things take on mental health.
When an employee’s quantity of work makes it impossible to sustain a healthy work-life balance, mental health will inevitably suffer. Expecting employees to work significantly more than standard full-time hours is an issue that should be addressed.
If a workplace has a busy period during which excessive hours are unavoidable, this should be balanced by reduced or more flexible working hours at other times.
Striving, as much as possible, to make each employee responsible for a reasonable amount of work can be a major change, but it’s often one of the most effective strategies for supporting better mental health among its employees.
Avoid Employer Litigation Through Effective Workplace Strategies
A lack of consideration for employee mental health can be a costly liability that leaves you needing to hire an employer litigation attorney. If you find yourself entangled in employer litigation, don’t hesitate to seek expert legal guidance. Contact Pearlman, Brown & Wax, LLP today for personalized assistance tailored to your specific needs in navigating the complexities of employer litigation.
If you’re concerned about how employee mental health concerns may become a legal or financial liability, it’s best to consider new workplace strategies. Our employer litigation attorneys can use such strategies to help defend you against employee claims if they should arise.
Supporting employee mental health typically involves a variety of strategies, some of which entail more effort than others. Taking the time to consider and address how workplace policies might negatively impact worker mental health is a smart strategy that leads to more satisfied workers and reduces the chance of a company facing employer litigation.