Work is a major aspect of our daily life. Without our jobs, we won’t be able to sustain our daily requirements. However, often mental health issues disrupt our work-life balance. It might be caused by trauma in our personal life or dissatisfaction in our jobs. Nevertheless, it affects our state of mind and hampers our progress in personal and professional life.
Furthermore, with Covid-19 bringing about uncertainty in everyone’s life, cases of mental health disorders are on the rise. In this blog, we will take a look at how senior management at the workplace can curb the mental health issues of employees. Read on to get an insight.
1. Employers and Managers Should Allow Enhanced Collaboration
Employees are yearning for connection now more than ever. According to the Slack Future of Work Study, over 90% of employees desire to feel more connected to their coworkers. Employee empowerment includes possibilities for emotional and social growth as well as professional development. Within the firm, these ties can help to improve collaboration, communication, and trust.
Mentorship programs, employee resource groups, workplace social events, and other frameworks for these types of linkages can be established by employers. While the development of remote and hybrid work may make the connection more difficult, virtual collaboration tools, breaks, dedicated in-person collaboration days, and other alternatives can help bridge the gap.
2. Managers Should Model Healthy Behaviors
Don’t just claim you care about mental health. Do something about it. Model it for your team members, so they feel comfortable prioritizing self-care and setting boundaries. Managers are frequently so focused on their team’s well-being and completing tasks that they neglect to look after themselves.
To avoid burnout, mention that you have a therapy appointment or are planning a staycation. Only 57% of employees with moderate depression and 40% of employees with severe depression obtain treatment to alleviate their symptoms. So, steps must be taken to address the issues of mental health disorders and stress. This has been discussed extensively in the next point.
3. Offer Employees with Opportunities to Support Well-Being
Meditation, sleep, and fitness programs, for example, can provide all employees with the tools they need for overall well-being. Rather than focusing solely on employees who are suffering from mental illness or who are dealing with mental health issues such as stress or worry, this strategy prioritizes mental health for the entire workforce.
4. Managers or Employers Should Share Their Experience
The pandemic’s silver lining is that it is normalizing mental health issues. Almost everyone has felt some level of discomfort at some point in their lives. However, the universality of the experience will only result in a reduction in stigma if people, particularly those in positions of authority, share their stories.
As a leader, being transparent about your mental health concerns allows people to feel comfortable approaching you about their own mental health issues.
5. Senior Officials and Team Leaders Should be Flexible and Inclusive
Expect the circumstance, your team’s demands, and your own needs should evolve as time passes by. Check-in on a regular basis, especially at transitional points. Only by understanding what’s going on will you be able to assist in the resolution of any issues that arise.
Those conversations will also provide you with an opportunity to reinforce mental health norms and practices. Inclusive flexibility entails proactive communication and norm-setting to assist people in creating and maintaining the limits they require.
6. Training and Growth Opportunities Alleviate Depression
Employees desire to make a difference in a satisfying career that allows them to contribute to a broader goal. Providing training and learning opportunities enhances employee enthusiasm and engagement while also improving employee performance and, thus, corporate performance.
Employees are more likely to stay with their employer and contribute meaningfully to their teams if they believe they are progressing professionally and personally.
7. HR, Managers, and Team Leaders Need to Communicate Often
A study conducted on employees of Qualtrics and SAP yielded the following result. Since the outbreak, employees who thought their bosses were bad at communicating had been 23% more likely than others to have mental health problems.
Managers must ensure that staff is kept up to date on any organizational changes or modifications. Senior officials should make any changes to work hours and norms clear. They should set expectations regarding workloads, prioritize what must be completed, and acknowledge what can be delegated if required to reduce stress.
8. Senior Management Should Modify the Policies
In response to the pandemic and civic instability, be as generous and flexible as possible in modifying policies and practices. You may need to revisit your policies and procedures on flexible hours, paid time off, email and other forms of communication, and paid and unpaid leave, for example.
Instead of evaluating against stringent targets, try to reframe performance reviews as opportunities for empathetic feedback and growth. If you’re going to make adjustments, make it clear that you’re doing so to support your employees’ mental health.
These are some of the steps that managers, HR, and employers need to take a look at. If you are writing an essay on the same topic, you should use the points shared above.
Author – Suhana is a passionate blogger and digital marketing enthusiast, she is one of the most talented assignment experts who also provide Java assignment help through myassignmenthelp website. She enjoys the ever-evolving world of digital marketing and loves to share her opinion on every possible update with her audience. When not creating magic with her words, you can find her sky-diving or trekking in the most bizarre locations.
