Mental Health Matters in The World of Work

Mental Health Matters in The World of Work

Mental health issues were projected as the next pandemic post covid-19 pandemic. Employees and people across the world are suffering from different mental health illnesses, approximately 1 billion people across the world are affected. In low-income countries the situation is worse. In the case of South Africa, mental health remains a taboo in black communities and access to mental health services remains a challenge. Mental health issues in the world of work could be triggered by multiple factors including but not limited to toxic working environments, work overload, and pressure as well as major personal challenges (job loss, divorce, death of loved one etc.). It is from this backdrop that institutions must address the mental health and overall well-being of their employees, and people in general. Mental health is connected and intertwined to overall well-being.

There are various programmes institutions/companies can explore to create enabling conditions for their employees to reach out for support when affected by mental health. Companies should share and refer resources and important information to their employees. Juts like Spotify, companies should also implement wellness shut down for the whole week to let their employees take care of their mental health. This is not a cost but an investment in their people. Furthermore, other strategies could be mental breaks implemented in between meetings and work during the day.