Nowadays, most employee wellness programs consist of gym memberships, rec rooms, and catered meals. Such benefits are valuable, but within a wellness program should be room for mental health. Studies of a diverse group of occupations have found a number of job stressors associated with depression, yet there is a lack of intervention in the workplace to combat it. While the source of mental health issues for an individual may be a combination of outside factors unrelated to work, businesses have a role to play in ensuring that their work environment does not create nor facilitate mental health challenges to its employees. Ways businesses can improve upon their environment is by:
Prioritizing mental health education: teach employees how to build the vocabulary that is necessary to seek and offer emotional support
Considering flexible workplace policies: give employees the freedom to make independent choices that accommodate for their mental health
As a leader, showing compassion: encourage vulnerability and cultivate compassion to establish positive feelings and trust amongst coworkers
As an employee, showing emotional availability: be available and willing to take the time to reach out to others and respond in a way that is understanding without necessarily trying to fix or solve the issue
Additional resource guide for mental health in the workplace: https://www.cdc.gov/workplacehealthpromotion/tools-resources/workplace-health/mental-health/index.html
Sources:
https://hbr.org/2019/08/what-wellness-programs-dont-do-for-workers
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders