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Creating a workplace and organizational culture that supports employee mental health is becoming more essential than ever. Workers are not only demanding better work-life balance but recognizing the impact of their workload and working environment on their overall mental health.
Managing employee burnout takes more than a quarterly pizza party. To lead effectively, HR leaders must understand the signs of declining employee mental health and have a plan in place to help.
Identify depression and burnout at work
The growth of hybrid and remote work has increased the challenge of recognizing mental health concerns in employees. HR Digest shares that depression and burnout may be masked by high performance or digital distance, making it more difficult to identify. Telling signs to look for include a new hesitation to take on projects, a withdrawal from social events or channels, or an apathetic demeanor in meetings.
Create a mental health care strategy
Systemic change is needed to heal employee burnout and create a mentally well workforce. While depression often originates outside of the workplace, burnout is a direct consequence of workload and environment.
Creating a care strategy to reduce and address employee mental health is imperative. Items to consider include:
- Take an honest look at employee workload and deadlines — are they sustainable and achievable?
- Cultivate a culture of psychological safety — you cannot provide support if your employees are afraid to speak.
- Include manager training — you cannot expect leaders to navigate employee mental health without extensive training.
- Identify an appropriate Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for your employees — the more customizable, the better.
Communicate your plan
Once your strategy has been built, it’s time to communicate it. Communicating change — even positive change — requires planning.
Using our 3-phase approach, you can identify your audience, what you’d like to say, and how best to say it.
When talking to leaders, ensure buy-in on the new mental health strategy. Follow up with training and touchpoints to ensure understanding. Once a mental health struggle is identified, your response needs to be immediate and empathetic. An easily accessible “response kit” featuring EAP links and peer support networks encourages employees to seek the help they need.
By learning to identify depression and burnout at work, creating a mental health care plan, and communicating openly with leaders and employees about mental health and available benefits, your workforce can become as resilient as it is productive.
