Managing and supporting mental health in the workplace is an ever growing and critical challenge for many employers today. Evidence shows that the current financial crisis and the subsequent prolonged economic downturn is making the situation worse due to increased work pressures and job insecurity. According to recent research carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), the issue of mental ill health is still being swept under the carpet in most workplaces, with just four in 10 employees saying they would feel confident to disclose a mental health problem to their employer and with their respective employers reluctant to address mental health issues despite the overwhelming evidence of the cost to the business.

The poll of 2,000 people in employment in the UK shows that despite the fact that more than a quarter (26 per cent) of employees have experienced a mental health problem at work, very few employers are taking positive steps to manage this increasingly business critical issue. In fact, only 25 per cent of respondents say their organisation encourages its employees to talk openly about mental health problems in the place of work. Another similar study, conducted by the charity organisation ‘Mind’, revealed that employees would not unveil their stress or mental health issues to their employer for fear of being placed first in line for redundancy in an organisational shake-up. And this fear is not unsubstantiated as Mind found that of those employees who disclosed mental distress to their employer, a staggering one in five were either sacked or forced to quit.

Furthermore, 56 per cent of the 2,000 respondents said that they would not employ someone experiencing depression, even if they were the best candidates for the job. Many employers are not even aware of the extent of the problem, with many of them fearing that if they do make any attempts to address mental health issues they could be making things worse or even provoking legal consequences. And while many employers are very good in supporting their employees who have broken a leg, they often feel lost when it comes to supporting a person who has been diagnosed with depression. And, unfortunately, a common assumption made by many employers still exists that mental health problems are just caused by home issues, so some of them feel that it is not appropriate – or indeed their responsibility – to intervene and support their staff. The reality is that in most cases, people’s mental health problems are a combination of problems they face at work and outside work. The CIPD’s autumn 2011 Employee Outlook “Focus on mental health at work survey” found that 65 per cent of people reporting poor mental health said that this is due to a combination of work and non-work factors, 20 per cent said their poor mental health is just down to non-work issues, while 15 per cent said their poor mental health is the result of work alone.

As such, one can argue that mental health is still the elephant in the room in the workplace as it exists but it is often ignored. The culture of silence that predominates within the organisation often means that undetected mental health problems can end in a crisis, resulting in sick leave and even unemployment. In fact, a recent study by the global consulting firm Mercer revealed that stress is now the biggest cause of workplace absence. Another serious risk posed for businesses that do not deal effectively with poor mental health issues in the workplace is presenteeism, as research demonstrates that most people with mental health problems continue to go to work and report that it can impact on their ability to concentrate, make good decisions and provide effective customer service. It is estimated that ‘presenteeism’ accounts for 1.5 times as much working time lost as absenteeism and costs more to employers because it is more common among higher-paid staff.

In response to this, Mind and the CIPD have come together and developed a new guide with the aim to assist managers and employers to overcome these challenges. The guide, “Managing and supporting mental health at work – disclosure tools for managers”, aims at helping employers ensure that how they manage people supports their mental well being and resilience, and also encourages more employees to talk. Ben Willmott, CIPD Head of Public Policy, explained: “The guidance underlines that managing and supporting mental health at work is integral to good people management. To a large degree this is about how managers interact with staff on a day to day basis and the extent to which they build working relationships based on mutual trust and confidence, for example, by managing workloads effectively and providing appropriate feedback, coaching and support where necessary.”

“Managers are the eyes and ears of organisations, so they need to be equipped with the knowledge and confidence to enable them to pick up on the early warning signs and intervene where employees are struggling. Mental ill health is usually caused by a complex interaction between pressures at work and at home, so increasing worries about debt, home repossession and job insecurity, as the economy continues to remain depressed, may well lead to a surge in mental ill health,” Willmott maintained.

Supporting staff through a difficult period does not have to cost the earth and in doing so can have huge benefits for any business, argued Mind’s Chief Executive Paul Farmer. Farmer explained that while some may argue that organisational changes cost money and budgets are tight, the reality is that most good well-being practices don’t require any expenditure − small steps, such as ensuring staff take a lunch break, have an opportunity to talk to their managers and where possible the opportunity to work flexible hours, can make a huge difference. The guide demonstrates that inexpensive, simple measures to support staff mental well being can help businesses save up to 30 per cent of the costs associated with lost working days, staff turnover and lower productivity caused by mental health issues. Indeed, FTSE 100 companies that took action on employee health issues on average outperformed their competitors financially by 10 per cent in 2009.

The workplace is changing, with flexible working, resilience, employee engagement, and talent management now common currency. Positively managing poor mental health issues undertakes these approaches and can reap huge rewards with respect to staff morale, productivity and loyalty. Taking simple steps to maintaining an open and supportive environment is the key to creating a mentally healthy workplace. Communication is indispensable in encouraging openness around mental health issues that will eliminate discrimination and create successful healthy workplaces for all. And as an employer speaking at Mind’s business summit of May 2011 said: “Creating mentally healthy workplaces is just about good management. There isn’t any magic to it; it’s the things you’d expect: managers who have common sense, a degree of empathy, recognise that individuals want to be part of something – all those straightforward things.”

Ms Camilleri is a researcher at the Foundation for Human Resources Development (FHRD)