How should you address mental wellbeing and harassment in your business?

Equality, discrimination and harassment are key issues for society, government and employers and all individuals. We have all seen the news relating to the #metoo and #timesup movements. 

These movements have uncovered unreported harassment. Unreported bullying. Unreported unpleasant and unsocial behaviours in many different environments. This isn’t just about Hollywood or the entertainment industry. As an employment lawyer I advise about discrimination and harassment issues on an almost daily basis. It really is the source of most grievances. 

In my recent legal updates around the country I have focussed upon two topics. In Bristol and St Albans we spoke about sexual harassment. In Cardiff we spoke about mental wellbeing. These were dealt with as separate topics as they are issues which require and deserve their own approach. But what became evident to me in delivering these two topics is that we must not lose sight of the overlap between these areas. Bullying and harassment is a significant factor in causing poor mental health and wellbeing. 

What problems does this cause?

This isn’t rocket science and I am sure that you have heard an awful lot of this before. There is a significant body of research evidence which shows that bullying and harassment causes increased absence, increased labour turnover, decreased productivity and of course the increased risk of litigation in the employment tribunal. 

There is also a clear and growing body of evidence which shows that employees with mental health difficulties and poor mental wellbeing are more likely to suffer high levels of absence, be the most likely to be involved in disputes at work, to bring or be the subject of grievances and consequently be at greater risk of dismissal - bringing with it again an increased risk of litigation.

So what are you saying I need to do about this?

This is a two stage approach. And this isn’t just about sitting your employees down in front of webinar and ticking the compliance box to show that they have had their discrimination (although I completely accept that that can form a relatively effective part of your solution). 

If you want to do more than the bare minimum relating to legal compliance, then you need to and must go further if you actually want to affect the bottom line. If you want to improve absence levels. If you want to improve employee wellbeing. If you want to improve productivity. If you want to reduce the level of disputes between employees in the business and the time spent by HR resolving those grievances. 

So – training?

Well, yes and no. We recommend that we spend an interactive day with your employees. We will challenge them about their behaviours. We will highlight bullying and harassment risks.  We will explain the legal context that this sits in. We will discuss where the ‘line is drawn’ in relation to behaviours. We will assess the effects of behaviours (whether inadvertent or otherwise). We will practice with them how to intervene, what to say, how best to approach different issues, but most of all they will understand that such issues cannot be ignored. They cannot be swept under the carpet. People can’t be afraid to speak out.  Problems must be identified and dealt with.

If you are interested in putting your employees through this challenging but rewarding day then get in touch.

Matt Huggett, Partner

July 2018