Mental health
Advice
Working at home for an employer - Mental Health
It is hard for employers to determine the mental health and stress of their employees from home. Businesses and organisations must have procedures in place to ensure that the mental health of their employees is taken care of during times when they are required to work from home. Mental health conditions may also classify as disabilities anyone with a mental health condition is protected under the Equality Act 2010.
The National Health Service (NHS) recommends the following:
- Making a dedicated workspace;
- Taking regular breaks;
- Staying connected;
- Setting boundaries with family members;
- Planning your current schedule in the long-term; and
- Setting and sticking to a routine.
Employers and businesses must consider communicating properly with employees. According to the Stevenson-Farmer Review (2017), poor mental health at work imposes a direct cost of £33-42 Billion a year on UK businesses, with much of the costs arising from reduced productivity due to poor mental health at work, including sickness absence and staff turnover. This is an incredible amount of money for businesses to lose due to mental health, especially in a time where maintaining it is essential.
One of the most basic steps businesses may take to reduce mental health conditions and stress is to remain in contact with employees, and offer support by the business in times of severe pressure. Simply speaking to employees working from home over the phone or revising existing office policies (open-door policies, for example being converted to open communication policies with a dedicated helpline for employees) or offering flexible working may help to reduce mental health issues amongst your employees.
Managers may wish to take training to address mental health issues in the workplace. They should be able to recognise common signs and symptoms of mental ill-health, know how to intervene and be able to provide confidential additional support for that employee within the organisation.
Online training (E-Learning) is available for free at Acas.org.uk, which include:
- Mental Health;
- Redundancy;
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion;
- Contracts, Hour’s and Pay;
- Leave and time off;
- Managing people and performance; and
- Dealing with workplace problems.
Further in-house training may be provided according to company policy. Evidence of training and properly recording information of every instance and its resolution helps to reduce potential claims against your business by employees. Maintaining the mental health of your employees is not only a legal requirement but can aid in making your business more profitable.