mental health in the workplace · report, ‘creating a mentally healthy workplace’, analysed the...

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Autopia | Mental Health in the Workplace

Mental Health in the Workplace

autopia.com.au

Moving beyond the stigma to promote an engaged workforce

ContentsFOREWORD 1

INTRODUCTION 2

Personalising mental health 2

The scope of the problem 2

The cost to business 2

The stigma 2

How can workplaces help? 3

CREATING A SAFE AND HEALTHY WORKPLACE 4

Keep it simple 4

The right ingredients 4

Defined roles and responsibilities 4

Career pathways 4

Flexible and supportive working conditions 5

Rewards and recognition 5

Culture and environment 5

Walk the talk 5

DEVELOPING A MENTAL HEALTH STRATEGY FOR YOUR WORKPLACE 6

The law 6

Workplace Health and Safety Act 2011 6

Disability Discrimination Act 1992 6

Fair Work Act 2009 7

Privacy Act 1988 7

Creating an action plan 7

Identify priority areas of action 7

Implement actions 8

Review and monitor outcomes 8

CASE STUDY - KING & WOOD MALLESONS 10

The challenge 10

The task 10

The action plan 11

Wellbeing Officers 11

Managing Mental Health in the Workplace training 11

Psychological rehabilitation 11

TJMF Psychological Wellbeing: Best Practice Guidelines for the Legal Profession 11

R U OK? at Law – Look Deeper campaign 11

Staff wellbeing program 11

Community leadership 11

The results 11

CONCLUSION 12

BIBLIOGRAPHY 13

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There is a saying that “the most important assets in a business go up and down in the lifts”. Over recent decades businesses have demonstrated an increasing commitment to nurturing these ‘assets’ by increasing their focus on health and safety, and demonstrating this commitment by striving to achieve ‘zero incidents’ targets. Employers should be proud of the ground we have made in these areas, and we can all appreciate that a decrease in physical injuries and deaths has helped provide a better quality of life for employees, a decrease in operational downtime and absenteeism, increased engagement, all resulting in increased productivity and profitability.

But what about injuries that aren’t as obvious to the naked eye? Mental health is Australia’s third largest health problem that affects one in five people at any one time in any given year. It is harder to identify, and is typically met with significantly less empathy and support than a physical injury. Yet, its impact on business performance costs Australia $11 billion per year, and the cost to our communities is even harder to grasp.

If our people are the most important assets in our business, and one in five are nursing a mental health injury during the majority of their waking lives in our workplaces, employers have a duty to do all we reasonably can to aid their recovery, and prevent future injuries.

The workplace is one of the most significant stakeholders in an employee’s wellbeing, and the good news is that there are some business fundamentals – like role and goal clarity,

reward and recognition programs, career development opportunities, flexible work practices – that have a disproportionately positive effect on an employee’s mental health.

In this whitepaper, “Mental Health in the Workplace”, we shine a light on the issues and explore insights to enable businesses to move beyond the stigma and promote a truly engaged, happy and healthy workforce.

Foreword

Greg ParkesGeneral ManagerAutopia

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The workplace is one of the most significant stakeholders in an employee’s wellbeing, and the good news is that there are some business fundamentals that have a disproportionately positive effect on an employee’s mental health.

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IntroductionMental health issues can affect every aspect of life, from our relationships to everyday activities like eating, sleeping and sport. Given the amount of time we spend at work, the impact these issues can have on our professional relationships and our effectiveness at work can be significant.

1 Australian Bureau of Statistics (2007). National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing: Summary of Results. 2 Begg S; Voc, T; Barker, B; Stevenson, C; Stanley, L; Lopez, AD. (2007). The Burden

of Disease and Injury in Australia 2003. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. 3 Ibid 4 PricewaterhouseCoopers. (2014). Creating a Mentally Healthy Workplace Return on Investment

Analysis. 5 TNS Global. (2014). State of Mental Health in Australia. 6 National Mental Health Commission. (2016). Equally Well - the National Consensus Statement on improving the physical health

and wellbeing of people living with mental illness.

Here we look at how mental health issues are affecting Australian workplaces and what can be done to create a healthy and happy workforce - and successful business - in the future.

Personalising mental health

Mark was always one of your most conscientious and motivated workers. He was the first to put his hand up when his managers asked for input, and one of the last to leave staff functions. None of his colleagues could pinpoint when things changed, but slowly Mark started to become withdrawn and disengaged. He would arrive at work late and unshaven, miss meetings and avoid participating in friendly office banter. Eventually, his behaviour started impacting his work: deadlines were missed, errors made, and his productivity waned. An employee who was once one of your greatest assets had become a liability. Mark was taking more and more sick leave, and on the days when he was present his work was substandard. In the HR department, alarm bells were ringing.

Little did you know, Mark was suffering from depression brought on by myriad factors: relationship issues at home, stress at work, and an overwhelming sense that his life and career weren’t heading on the trajectory he had imagined. Mark is not alone.

The scope of the problem

Research by the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows 45 per cent of Australians aged between 16 and 85 will experience a mental illness in their lifetime, and as many as one in five adults will have an episode in any given year.1 Mental health conditions can range from mild anxiety to severe depression, to serious psychotic illnesses such as schizophrenia. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare ranks mental illness as the third largest health-related problem in Australia, after heart disease and cancer.2 Furthermore, it identifies depression as the leading cause of non-fatal disability.3 Despite the pervasiveness of mental illness in Australia, it remains an area of significant stigma, including in the workplace, where adults spend much of their lives, and there is a complex interplay between cause and effect.

The cost to business

What does it cost business when an employee takes numerous sick days every year because of mental illness? What about the days when they are at work but their productivity is significantly reduced? Add to this equation multiple employees in similar circumstances and a handful of workers’ compensation claims. How does this impact the bottom line?

Quite substantially. A 2014 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) found that mental illness costs Australian workplaces almost $11 billion a year.4

This comprises $4.7 billion in absenteeism, $6.1 billion in presenteeism (when employees are at work but less productive) and $146 million in compensation claims. And the total cost is likely to be far greater. “The true cost of untreated mental health conditions is much higher when turnover and other impacts are considered”, the report says. Separate research in 2014 by TNS Global, commissioned by beyondblue, found that 21 per cent of employees had taken time off work in the preceding year due to feeling mentally unwell.5

The stigma

Psychological conditions aren’t like physical health problems. They can be equally debilitating and pose the same risk to life and wellbeing, but they don’t typically engender the same degree of empathy and respect. Speaking to the National Press Club in July 2017, outgoing Chair of the National Mental Health Commission Professor Allan Fels said even in the health profession, people with mental illness were discriminated against. “There is so called ‘diagnostic overshadowing’. In simple terms, if I have a sore back then I am taken more seriously than a person with mental illness with the same complaint, with the consequence that psychological conditions can go undiagnosed and untreated, which can prove fatal.” Fels was launching Equally Well - the National Consensus Statement on improving the physical health and wellbeing of people living with mental illness, and said stigma and discrimination against people with mental illness remained widespread.6

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7 PricewaterhouseCoopers. (2014). Creating a Mentally Healthy Workplace Return on Investment Analysis.

How can workplaces help?

There’s no denying the workplace is one of the greatest stakeholders in an employee’s wellbeing. Having healthy staff not only boosts the morale and culture of an organisation, but it also saves substantial costs in absenteeism, presenteeism, compensation claims, attrition, recruitment and training. Workplaces have a vested interest in making their employees happy and healthy and keeping them that way. Factors like stress, workload, inflexible working conditions and bullying can, if not trigger mental illness, exacerbate the condition. Employers, HR managers, CEOs, supervisors and team leaders all have a responsibility to create safe and healthy workplaces for their staff – it’s an ethical obligation but also a legal one. Moreover, it makes business sense. The PwC report, ‘Creating a Mentally Healthy Workplace’, analysed the return on investment and found that for every $1 spent on improving workplace health and culture, employers reaped a $2.30 return.7

Creating mentally healthy workplaces goes beyond superficial gestures like fruit in the tea room and free gym memberships. While these things are nice to have in the workplace, addressing mental health requires a more strategic approach. It involves making mental health a priority in the workplace and building an action plan of policies and systems around this imperative. A big part of the solution relates to appropiate job and work design. Do staff feel valued and supported in their work, do they have a defined job description and career pathway, are their work conditions meeting their needs, and are they adequately rewarded?

If a team member presents with a mental health problem, it’s vital there’s a strategy in place to support them. This strategy must address the employee’s specific needs, both on an interpersonal level – providing support and compassion – and on a practical level, by making adjustments to the individual’s work situation to help them carry out their duties.

If I have a sore back then I am taken more seriously than a person with a mental illness who has the same complaint, with the consequence that psychological conditions can go undiagnosed and untreated.”

Professor Allen Fels, - outgoing Chair, the National Mental Health Commission

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48 Australian Public Service Commission, (2006). Turned up and Tuned in: A Manager’s Guide to Maximising Staff Attendance. 9 Medibank Private. (2008). The Cost of Workplace Stress in Australia.

Creating a safe and healthy workplace

Keep it simple

A workplace is like the human body. All of the organs, cells and systems need to be healthy and functioning efficiently for the body to maintain optimum performance. In a workplace, if the individual cells (employees) aren’t in peak mental health, and the systems supporting them are weak, the overall performance of the organisation is diminished. In short, a healthy workplace promotes healthy workers and this translates to a healthy bottom line.

Lucy Brogden, organisational psychologist and Chair of the National Mental Health Commission, subscribes to the Roman law maxim Salus populi est suprema lex (the people’s wellbeing is the highest law). “I actually think that if you set that as your guiding beacon in the organisation, that the wellbeing of your team is to be the highest principle, then really the rest falls into place; they’ll be much more productive, they’ll be much more engaged, they’ll be much more effective workers for you.”

Creating a mentally healthy workplace doesn’t necessarily need to be an onerous undertaking, involving expensive consultants and reams of complex paperwork. Brogden says too many employers and HR managers over-engineer the process, when it simply comes down to honouring the basic principles of human enterprise and engagement: creating a safe and supportive environment where employees feel valued, supported, motivated, engaged and rewarded. Get that right and you can proactively minimise the triggers that contribute to mental health issues.

A 2006 Australian Public Service Commission report found that, work pressure accounts for half of all psychological workplace injury claims, which cost a total of about $480 million a year, while bullying comprises one quarter.8 Furthermore, a 2008 Medibank Private analysis of the cost of workplace stress in Australia estimates that 3.2 days are lost per worker each year through stress.9 Key to managing these triggers is carefully designing job roles and working conditions that have the employees’ interests at heart.“We need to start at good job and work design and sit down and look at the functions of a job” says Brogden. “So, clear roles and responsibilities, good leadership and supervision,

the working conditions should be safe and conducive to good work; that you create a culture where people can have strong relationships with other people.

“There is actually a science for job and work design and, while we know that science, a lot of organisations don’t do it” she says. “If you talk to people and ask them about their position description, or their job description, and ask them how closely it relates to the job they do, most people will say it bears no resemblance. We’re trying to, through the work of the [Mentally Healthy Workplace] Alliance, encourage organisations to see the value in not just preventing illness, but in creating a productive workplace that is mentally healthy, and taking the time to sit down and actually think about the elements of job and work design for their people.”

The right ingredients

Defined roles and responsibilitiesWhat does ‘client interface and accountability system strategist and delivery lead’ actually mean? If you don’t know, chances are your employees don’t either. Job descriptions should be clearly documented with a prescribed set of duties and responsibilities that are practical and avoid ambiguous motherhood statements. They should include the employee’s core duties and functions, tools and resources available to them, reporting chain of command and key performance indicators. How and when will their performance be measured and what input do they have in the process? Demand and control is also an important barometer of job satisfaction; employees must have some balance between the demands of the job and exercising some control and autonomy over their functions.

Career pathwaysAre your employees in a dead-end job full of dull repetition, or are they on a career journey with ample opportunity for promotion, development and professional growth? To keep employees engaged and motivated they need access to mentoring and peer support services, career education and training, and new opportunities to learn and upskill. Map their potential path for progression within the organisation and consider supporting formal study outside the workplace.


Flexible and supportive working conditionsNo employee can subsist on fewer than eight hours’ sleep, and this must be the guiding principle in setting work hours, rosters and productivity demands. A healthy workforce is one that sets limits on overtime or workload, enforces breaks between shifts and regular rest periods, offers flexible hours and leave arrangements, and supports part-time hours and working from home.

Rewards and recognitionThe value of a pat on the back or formal recognition (through staff awards, for example), cannot be underestimated. In fact, these gestures can be far more powerful than a pay rise in boosting job satisfaction, motivation and engagement. There is no greater carrot than congratulating an employee for their efforts, especially in front of their peers.

Culture and environmentWhat does a pleasant workplace look like? It’s clean and safe with comfortable work spaces that are free from congestion, noise and clutter. It may have lots of natural light, fruit and snacks in the team room, flexible work stations and meeting areas, a drop-in massage therapist and free gym memberships. More importantly, it has a zero-tolerance policy on bullying, embraces diversity, nurtures collaboration and communication and has clearly articulated channels for dispute resolution and employee support.

Walk the talk

Brogden says workplaces must embrace a holistic approach to mental health beyond the tokenistic “yoga and fruit bowl approach”, and ensure their attitudes reflect their actions. Much of the task comes down to good relationship management and interpersonal skills.“To me this is the easy stuff, but often organisations think it’s sort of too easy, that there has to be something more complex, and our message is that actually a lot of this is not terribly complex, at the essence of it is humanity. You still go around organisations and a lot of these skills are described as the ‘soft skills’, and that’s put out in quite a pejorative way, not as a valued skill set, whereas it’s actually key to running the show.” She says.We’re trying to, through

the work of the [Mentally Healthy Workplace] Alliance, encourage organisations to see the value in not just preventing illness, but in creating a productive workplace that is mentally healthy…”

Lucy Brogden- Chair of the National Mental Health Comission

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610 Becher, S; Dollard, M. (2016). Psychosocial Safety Climate and Better Productivity in Australian Workplaces: Costs, Productivity, Presenteeism, Absenteeism. Safe Work Australia. 11 TNS Global. (2014). State of Mental Health in Australia.

Developing a mental health strategy for your workplace

A Safe Work Australia 2016 report researching Psychosocial Safety Climate (PSC) and productivity in Australian workplaces showed that, workers in a low PSC workplace had significantly higher absenteeism and productivity losses than those in healthy working environments.10 They took 43 per cent more sick days each month and had a 72 per cent higher performance loss, costing employers $1,887 per worker, per year. PricewaterhouseCoopers puts the cost of workplace mental illness at $11 billion a year in absenteeism, presenteeism and compensation claims. This doesn’t include the cost of staff turnover, recruitment and training.

The numbers speak for themselves, yet many Australian workplaces fail to grasp the importance of mental health resilience in the workplace. A 2014 TNS Global study commissioned by beyondblue found that only 52 per cent of employees believe that their workplace is mentally healthy.11 And only 56 per cent believe that their most senior leader values mental health.

The law

Employers are legally required to provide a mentally safe and healthy workplace for their employees, and are prohibited from discriminating against people with mental illness. Employer responsibilities are enshrined in four separate acts of Commonwealth legislation:

Workplace Health and Safety Act 2011Employers must ensure (as is reasonably practicable) that workplaces are physically and mentally safe and healthy for all employees. They are obliged to take action to prevent, or lessen the potential for, risks that may trigger or contribute to mental illness.

Disability Discrimination Act 1992It is illegal to discriminate against, harass or victimise an employee or prospective employee based on their mental condition. This includes direct discrimination, such as refusing to employ someone based on their mental illness, and indirect, such as imposing general conditions on the workforce that a mentally compromised employee cannot comply with. Employers must make reasonable adjustments to accommodate the special needs of employees with a mental condition.

Having a mental health strategy is an intrinsic part of being an employer. It should be apportioned the same importance as your mission statement. Not only do you have a moral duty to protect your staff from harm, but you are also legally required to provide a safe and healthy workplace that supports their psychological wellbeing. People are an organisation’s greatest asset, and keeping them safe and engaged returns dividends in the form of greater productivity, loyalty and retention.

Only 52 per cent of employees believe that their workplace is mentally healthy. And only 56 per cent believe that their most senior leader values mental health.TNS Global report for beyondblue

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Fair Work Act 2009Under Commonwealth industrial law, employers must not take any adverse actions against an employee or prospective employee based on their mental condition. This includes dismissal, discrimination and refusing to offer employment.

Privacy Act 1988Employers are not permitted to disclose information about an employee’s mental health without their consent. There are exceptions if disclosure is, for example, necessary to lessen or prevent a serious or imminent threat to the life or health of an individual.

Creating an action plan

Heads Up (headsup.org.au), a resource developed by beyondblue and the Mentally Healthy Workplace Alliance, helps employers create a step-by-step mental health action plan tailored for their business. The interactive online tool assists them in identifying risk areas and developing strategies to create a mentally healthy workplace. The three-step action plan covers three broad areas:

The three-step approach1. Identify priority areas of action2. Implement actions3. Review and monitor outcomes

Identify priority areas of actionUnderstand your workplaceThe key to any initiative for driving workplace change is understanding the current workplace environment. This baseline is crucial for articulating required changes and reviewing your progress. Start by canvassing the views of employees through confidential staff surveys, meetings and one-on-one discussions. How do they feel about the mental health status of their workplace? How might it be improved? Communication is key to any successful mental health strategy, so make sure your people are involved; consult, seek feedback, and consult again. Review existing mental health policies and identify any gaps. Analyse the statistics relating to your staff, including levels of disability, absenteeism patterns, uptake of employee benefits, Employee Assistance Program engagement, and rates of workplace incidents, accidents and compensation claims.

Raise awareness of mental health issues and reduce stigma Tackle the taboos of mental illness by talking openly about

it in the workplace. Can anyone share a personal story or experience of someone around them? Always exercise sensitivity and discretion in encouraging input.

Provide mental health training for all staff, especially managers and supervisors, and incorporate it in the induction program for new employees.

Encourage staff to participate in mental health-related events like R U OK? Day, Go Home on Time Day and World Mental Health Day. Can you use these occasions as a stimuli for a broader discussion about mental health?

Highlight mental health information on noticeboards, email or on your workplace intranet, and promote support services like Employee Assistance Programs and external helplines and referral services. Employers can also partner with external psychological services, providing managers and employees an outlet for seeking confidential support for mental health issues.

Support employees with mental health issues Managers need to be trained in how to start a conversation about mental health with employees. They need to be observant and attuned to the warning signs. Lucy Brogden says the conversation should not focus on performance,

Raising awareness and reducing stigma

Supporting employees with mental health

conditions

Promoting a positive working

environment

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rather it should look at the underlying reasons for a change in an employee’s behaviour and output. Simply noticing a change in a colleague and asking them if they are okay is one of the greatest “gifts” peers can give.

“We don’t need to have a workplace that’s full of psychologists and psychiatrists, but we need to have workplaces where people feel comfortable asking people how they’re feeling, what’s going on for them, and then be able to sit with that person and perhaps guide them to help within the organisation,” says Brogden.

Employers must also: Make reasonable adjustments to an employee’s working

conditions, as per legislation, to enable an individual with a mental health condition to carry out their duties.

Develop a stay or return to work plan for the employee that states any changed conditions, timeframes and required tasks.

Guide an employee with mental health concerns towards support services.

Policy development and implementation Workplace policies are the scaffolding that supports any good mental health strategy. They lay the groundwork for action and keep organisations accountable for their mental health responsibilities. Key areas of policy development all employers should consider are: Workplace bullying and harassment Cultural awareness Equal opportunity and discrimination Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) People and performance management Leave and working arrangements Recruitment Return to work Work health and safety Dispute resolution

Promoting positive job roles and working environments Address workplace risk factors, including stress, and

monitor and manage workloads and hours. Establish clear job descriptions and career pathways. Upskill leaders on how to improve communication,

manage people and oversee change. Provide avenues for employees to develop their skills and

build resilience. Increase your team’s awareness about their roles and

responsibilities, including in relation to mental health.

Implement actionsNow that you have identified areas for action, it’s time to set some measurable objectives and get started. Make sure the organisation is behind the plan and the leadership team is ready to lead by example. Identify ‘champions’ across the workplace who will become ambassadors for the initiative, and work out who will be responsible for implementing the separate components. Importantly, make sure you commit the relevant resources – financial, personnel, other – to support the strategy to fruition.

The objectives should be measurable outcomes you expect to achieve following implementation. Identify when and how they will be measured. Objectives may include things like: Reduction in workplace stress Decrease in mental health-related compensation claims

and absenteeism Increase in productivity Greater engagement in the Employee Assistance Program Improved retention Positive feedback from employees about workplace

culture

Review and monitor outcomesCongratulations, you’ve designed and implemented a mental health strategy, but the job’s not done yet. In fact, developing a mentally healthy workplace is an ongoing journey. An integral part of the process is reviewing your action plan, monitoring the outcomes and making necessary adjustments as the need arises. Set formal timelines for review - this may be quarterly, biannually or more frequently. The review process should draw on audits, HR data and feedback from staff and health and safety committees. An effective review process should also:

Assess whether objectives have been met when measured against the baseline data collated during the discovery process.

Identify any new issues or objectives that need to be addressed and incorporate them in the revised action plan.

Seek feedback from employees and managers about the strategy’s progress and impact.

Set long-term targets to guide the mental health strategy into the future.

Communicate the strategy’s impact to staff to maintain their engagement and reinforce the organisation’s commitment to mental health.

PwC, Creating a mentally healthy workplace Return on investment analysis

Through the successful implementation of an effective action to create a mentally healthy workplace, organisations, on average, can expect a positive return on investment (ROI) of 2.3.”


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Case study

12 Hickie; I; Kelk, N; Luscombe, G; Medlow, S. (2009). Courting the Blues: Attitudes Towards Depression in Australian Law Students and Lawyers. University of Sydney.

King & Wood Mallesons The challenge

King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) is a global top-tier law firm with offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane and Perth. The firm employs more than 1,100 lawyers nationally and has about 140 partners. With expertise in commercial, financial and specialist legal services, the practice spans blue-chip corporations, financial institutions and government entities. Like any workplace, KWM staff see their fair share of work pressure, but in the legal profession, job stress can be acutely heightened. Lawyers, by their nature, are ambitious, driven and thrive on the challenge of a big case, but they can also be reluctant to speak up when they need help. These characteristics, coupled with a high-pressure work environment, make lawyers susceptible to mental illness.

According to the University of Sydney’s 2009 Courting the Blues report, more than a quarter of barristers, one third of solicitors and almost half of all law students are at high or very high risk of suffering from mental illness.12 And they could delay seeking help because of discrimination and stigma. “This may be particularly the case with respect to a cohort of students who are clever, competitive, perfectionistic, have high expectations and who are generally quite hard on themselves,” says University of Technology Sydney’s Dean of Law, Jill McKeough, who wrote the report’s forward.

The task

Recognising the vulnerabilities of its workforce, in 2011 KWM partnered with The College of Law and seven major Australian law firms to establish Resilience@law, an initiative to promote awareness of mental health issues in the legal profession. The project had four key objectives: raising awareness of stress, depression and anxiety, removing the stigma of mental illness, developing self-care strategies, and providing support and resources for people with mental health concerns.

“Our focus has been on creating a culture where we can all grow and we know that can only happen when people can bring their whole selves with them to work”

Kellie Wade, King & Wood Mallesons’ National Diversity, Inclusion & Wellbeing Manager

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As part of the initiative, a short film was produced involving key figures in the legal profession who came together to share their experiences of battling mental health issues. The film marked the beginning of a cultural change at KWM. The firm subsequently embarked on a strategy to create a more mentally healthy workplace, based on the principles and initiatives of the Resilience@law program.

The action plan

KWM’s first responsibility is to its staff. The firm has a multifaceted approach to creating a mentally healthy workplace. With early intervention as its primary objective, the firm is committed to taking action to prevent, identify and resolve mental health problems through a number of key initiatives. These include:

Wellbeing OfficersA Wellbeing Officer program was introduced to help prevent and identify mental illness and encourage employees to speak up and seek help. More than 140 staff and partners from across the firm’s five Australian offices volunteered to take part in the program, acting as ‘spotters’ to identify colleagues needing help and connect them with support.

Managing Mental Health in the Workplace trainingAll HR staff complete a two-day Mental Health First Aid training course and/or a one-day Recognising and Managing Mental Health in the Workplace workshop. The training enables HR staff to recognise when someone requires support and provides a framework to help them manage mental health concerns.

Psychological rehabilitationKWM engages a professional rehabilitation service, Resilia, to provide expert psychological support for its workforce. HR teams are encouraged to contact Resilia as soon as they detect a problem, and psychologists then work closely with HR staff, supervisors, the employee and relevant medical practitioners to help the individual.

TJMF Psychological Wellbeing: Best Practice Guidelines for the Legal ProfessionKWM was a founding signatory of the TJMF Psychological Wellbeing: Best Practice Guidelines for the Legal Profession. The Guidelines (tjmf.org.au) promote awareness of mental health issues and help firms create psychologically healthy workplaces.

R U OK? at Law – Look Deeper campaignKWM and 17 other law firms joined forces with not-for-profit organisation R U OK? to develop a campaign called Look

Deeper. The campaign encouraged lawyers to share their personal stories of mental illness in videos that were shared across the profession. Among the participants was KWM Partner John Canning, who spoke about his experience living with bipolar disorder.

Staff wellbeing programKWM has introduced a range of initiatives to augment staff wellbeing. They include free and subsidised gym memberships, health checks, health seminars, onsite massage, reflexology, yoga and Pilates classes, resilience training and an Employee Assistance Program. KWM also supports flexible working arrangements, allowing employees to work from home or at other off-site locations.

Community leadershipIn addition to tackling the mental health challenge in-house, KWM has also led a broader discussion of workplace wellbeing in the wider community. Initiatives include: Hosting a high-profile panel on mental health in the

workplace in 2016, led by partner John Canning. Presenting at the 2016 Mental Health in the Australian

Workplace Conference alongside organisations such as the National Mental Health Commission, beyondblue and SANE Australia.

The results

KWM’s investment in mental health has returned dividends for the organisation. Not only are staff more engaged, but sick leave has decreased, retention has increased and the business has reaped a $50,000 saving in salary continuance insurance premiums.

The key impacts of KWM’s mental health strategy include: A 10 per cent reduction in lawyer attrition in 2016. An 8 per cent increase in engagement in 2016,

demonstrated through a staff survey. A significant decrease in days taken off work due to

mental health issues. Two thirds of mental health cases in the organisation being

managed by a mental health expert under the partnership with Resilia.

Increased participation in workplace health programs, with anecdotal evidence suggesting this has translated to improved staff engagement and retention.

Kellie Wade, KWM’s National Diversity, Inclusion & Wellbeing Manager, says by making mental health a central focus of the business, KWM has sent a strong message to their people about how the firm prioritises staff wellbeing. “Our focus has been on creating a culture where we can all grow and we know that can only happen when people can bring their whole selves with them to work.”

ConclusionMental illness doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Workplaces can be part of the problem and, as the place where people spend much of their waking lives, must be part of the solution. Creating a mentally healthy workplace makes economic sense and is part of an employer’s financial responsibility.

But, it’s also a moral and civic one. Providing an environment that is conducive to good mental health, that has safeguards and support mechanisms for people experiencing psychological difficulties, upholds the most basic of human rights: that employees can go about their work in a safe place.

With one in five adults experiencing mental illness in any given year, it’s not enough for employers to passively respond to an issue, ad-hoc, when it arises. By the time the problem becomes apparent, much of the damage may already have been done, in terms of impacts on the staff member’s wellbeing and their contribution to the organisation. Workplaces must instead be proactive in developing a solid mental health strategy that has job and work design at its core.

As KWM has demonstrated, the benefits to business of getting workplace mental health right are immense: reductions in attrition, sick days and salary continuance insurance premiums; and an increase in employee engagement, resilience, and participation in workplace health programs and support services. When your staff are staying put, seeking help and speaking up about mental health, you know the investment is working. But creating a mentally healthy workplace is an ongoing journey of implementation, review and renew.

Stigma is a persistent problem that exacerbates the challenge of mental illness. But it doesn’t have to be an enduring one. By starting a conversation about mental health, raising awareness and education, and encouraging people to share their stories and seek support, we can break down the taboos of mental illness. Let’s start in the workplace.

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BibliographyAustralian Bureau of Statistics (2007). National Survey of Mental Health and

Wellbeing: Summary of Results.

Australian Human Rights Commission (2010). Workers with Mental Illness: a

Practical Guide for Managers.

Available at https://www.humanrights.gov.au/our-work/disability-rights/

publications/2010-workers-mental-illness-practical-guide-managers.

Australian Public Service Commission, (2006). Turned up and Tuned in: A

Manager’s Guide to Maximising Staff Attendance.

Becher, S; Dollard, M. (2016). Psychosocial Safety Climate and Better

Productivity in Australian Workplaces: Costs, Productivity, Presenteeism,

Absenteeism. Safe Work Australia.

Begg S; Voc, T; Barker, B; Stevenson, C; Stanley, L; Lopez, AD. (2007).

The Burden of Disease and Injury in Australia 2003. Canberra: Australian

Institute of Health and Welfare.

Heads Up Creating a Mentally Healthy Workplace: A guide for Business

Leaders and Managers.

Available at: https://www.headsup.org.au/docs/default-source/resources/

bl1256-booklet---creating-a-mentally-healthy-workplace.pdf?sfvrsn=4.

Hickie; I; Kelk, N; Luscombe, G; Medlow, S. (2009). Courting the Blues:

Attitudes Towards Depression in Australian Law Students and Lawyers.

University of Sydney.

Medibank Private. (2008). The Cost of Workplace Stress in Australia.

National Mental Health Commission. (2016). Equally Well - the National

Consensus Statement on improving the physical health and wellbeing of

people living with mental illness.

Available at: https://equallywell.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/

Equally-Well-Consensus-Statement.pdf

PricewaterhouseCoopers. (2014). Creating a Mentally Healthy Workplace

Return on Investment Analysis.

TNS Global. (2014). State of Mental Health in Australia.

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Autopia

Autopia is a financial services firm specialising in novated leasing and chattel mortgages for the Australian SME & large corporate sectors, and is part of ASX-listed Smartgroup Corporation. Autopia provides an end-to-end solution to both businesses and their employees for all things vehicle related through an advice-driven, service-centric model with strong online capabilities. Car buying, financing, maintenance, tax reporting & compliance, right through to vehicle disposal – Autopia helps optimise tax effectiveness and delivers “Intelligent Car Ownership” to hundreds of organisations and thousands of drivers throughout Australia.

autopia.com.au

mental health in the workplace · report, ‘creating a mentally healthy workplace’, analysed the...

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