Taking action to create a mentally healthy workplace

Mental health is just as important as physical health when managing work health and safety (WHS). A mentally healthy workplace promotes, protects and supports good health. They’re better places to work and are more productive. It’s good for workers and good for business. As a Mentally Healthy Workplaces Ambassador, I am keen to see the Financial Services Sector  become more mentally healthy.

In my own experience, business, workplaces and the wider community benefits when people are mentally healthy at work. Most staff are at work for one third of their time so I see it as my responsibility to help ensure it is a safe place, whether it is at the physical workplace, working from home or something in between. In doing so I can expect a more engaged and productive workforce, contributing to a culture where people feel safe and supported to talk about their mental health, and where they can raise issues about work and other factors that may be impacting upon them.

At Westpac I am proud of how we are focussed on people’s experience of work, how it is designed, how people feel supported by their peers, their leaders and the organisation as a whole. I am proud of how our workplace mental health strategy is psychosocially focussed, provides for the mental health needs of all our people, and not just built around an illness awareness campaign or deficit approach.

At Westpac we recognise that a healthy workplace is good for people. Mentally healthy workplaces can provide its people with many benefits such as confidence, a feeling of belonging, financial security, a sense of purpose, achievement and social connections and networks. These benefits can flow back into the business in many ways including increased productivity, reduced psychological injuries and a positive workplace culture.

The NSW Mentally Healthy Workplaces program promotes easy actions that workplaces can take to create a mentally healthy workplace.

1.      Good Work Design

Good work design is about creating jobs, work processes and environments that are healthy, safe and productive. Good work design supports employees to achieve high job performance, job satisfaction and productivity, it also helps prevent or reduce the factors that can have a negative impact on people’s mental health. With our new ways of work, rethinking job design is more important than ever.

 2.      Support a Flexible Workplace

By being flexible in the way work is delivered, you will support the needs of your team and create benefits including improved work/life balance, increased productivity, reduced absenteeism and improved morale.

3.      Promote Respectful Behaviour

In a mentally healthy workplace, people across all levels and roles talk to and treat others with dignity and respect. When incivility is present within workplaces or teams, teams or workplaces, morale suffers and issues around bullying and interpersonal grievances are much more likely, all of which can have a negative impact on mental health. Take action by ensuing your workplace is one where people feel safe to speak up, and where behaviour that makes other uncomfortable, feel excluded or disrespected is called out and not tolerated.

4.      Connect to Support

We bring our whole selves to work and everyone may at times need support. Take action by starting an open conversation to check in with your people and provide access to appropriate support resources (e.g, mental health, financial, relationship etc.) if they need it.

 The NSW Government’s Mentally Healthy Workplaces website has a wealth of resources on how you could take action:

www.mentalhealthatwork.nsw.gov.au