Demystifying Mental Health, Psychosocial Risk, Psychological Safety, Wellbeing, Work Design, and ISO 45003. By a WHS Lead Auditor & PhD Researcher

Since Covid heightened the platform for the need and the rise and rise of workplace mental health, the only thing that has spread faster is the confusion and misconception of the related concepts that entail it.

The important thing to understand is the different concepts is the difference between Systems and people’s psychological and behaviour outcomes. Put all your efforts into Systems as much as you like, if you don’t first support and maintain people psychological needs, you’re effectively wasting all your time, money, personnel on enhancing your systems. Systems are only a framework to support people. Systems can not fix anything if people are unwilling, or unable, to utilise their support. Systems for psychological work support are things like ISO 45003, work design, policies etc. Think of it as if your ‘aim’ is wanting better physical health, you may join a gym. The ‘system’ is the gym equipment and the instructor, the support for your aim. Just having a gym will absolutely never result in your physical health improving. The ability, and willingness, of you going to the gym several times a gym and making use of the system, equipment, and trainers, is the key to getting better mental health. The same way, establishing workplace mental health can be supported by ISO 45003, work design, policies, and other frameworks, but unless people are able, and willing, to work within these and make use of them, sustained workplace mental health, psychologically safe employees and a healthy workplace will not be possible. Also, ISO 45003 does not meet legislative requirements. It is just a framework to help put legislative requirements into place. But without the required qualifications behind you, just putting ISO 45003 into place does not mean you are compliant.

The most misunderstood by far has to be Psychological Safety and the ‘magic’ fix to everything this is. Very briefly, Amy Edmondson shot to newfound fame as the ‘inventor’ of Psychological Safety. Her research looked at the group dynamics within teams and the safety they felt to make mistakes and speak out. And that is all Psychological Safety is. Team dynamics in feeling safe to speak up, in a brief description. Yes, they are down-stream effects that are desired by all, like performance and innovation. But the great misconception is that Psychological safety is the starting point of these. It isn’t. Psychological Safety also does not result in a psychologically safe workplace or employees. It is somewhere in the middle of all the necessities to having mental health and a psychological safe workplace. There are two key requirements that make up the majority of workplace mental health and a psychologically safe workplace.

THE most important requirement for workplace mental health and a psychologically safe workplace is by far its culture. ‘Psychological Safety does not establish culture. It is the result of culture. Culture and the other key requirement to workplace mental health and a psychologically safe workplace make about 80% of the requirements for workplace mental health and a psychologically safe workplace. This other requirement being psychosocial hazards.

The second most important workplace mental health and a psychologically safe workplace requirement is PSYCHOSOCIAL SAFETY. This is almost always confused with psychological safety as mentioned above when people talk about what workplace mental health and healthy workplaces. They are absolutely not the same thing. At all. Psychosocial safety comes from eliminating and mitigating sources of psychological and social chronic stress within the workplace, that will impact psychological and physical health. This is also the only legal requirement of all workplaces within the mental health workings required. Together, psychosocial safety and culture make up about 80% of the requirements for psychologically safe employees and workplace.

The second most misunderstood concept is wellbeing. Psychological wellbeing absolutely does not result in mental health. Before wellbeing can have any benefit, psychosocial safety and culture must be mitigated and harm eliminated where possible. And to highlight exactly how much misconception there is that these are the same things or that wellbeing results in mental health, a study showing that despite global efforts into wellbeing, distress among employees remained high. Because the key to mental health is culture and psychosocial safety. Not wellbeing

They are a very few legitimate sources of not meeting legislative requirements in mitigated or removing workplace psychosocial harm. The legislation states ‘where reasonably practicable’. The thing most people also don’t know is that the legislation also requires anyone managing psychosocial harm, consultants, trainers, apps, software, managers, to be qualified in BOTH H&S Risk management AND organisational psychology, exactly so that the expertise to establish exactly what IS ‘reasonably practicable’. Only having H&S training and thinking of psychological hazards in the same way as physical hazards and trying to manage them with bowties, swim-lanes and risk registers will likely result in legislative breaches. Only having organisational psychology and thinking work design is harm prevention will likely result in legislative breaches. Calling yourself an ISO 45003 trainer or ISO auditor with only a certificate of having attended a 2–4-day course will likely result in legislative breaches. ?

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The author is a Lead Auditor for Health & Safety, has been a BSI Executive ISO trainer across several varying Standards, an Executive Coach and is a current Board Director of NZOQ. Her PhD research focused on Psychosocial Risk, Wellbeing, Culture & Resilience, in Positive Psychology & Organisational Behaviour.

She is founder of EnableOrg? - Benchmark Psychosocial Health & Wellness. For workplace legal obligations in Psychological Harm Prevention & Wellbeing. EnableOrg?s’ Lead-indicator, integrated software helps you identify, correct, prevent and manage workplace psychosocial & wellbeing risks, for a sustainable, long term mental health, healthy culture and healthy engaged, employees.

Ranjeeta is a renowned Thought Leader and Expert in the field across Organisational Psychosocial Health, Wellbeing, Engagement, Resilience, Leadership and Culture. She is an International Speaker and has presented and spoken at varying conferences and summits.

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