If workers have expectations for an employer to take care of their mental health and wellbeing, they are spot on. Not only do WHS regulations place responsibility on employers to identify and mitigate psychosocial risks, there is a massive business case around mental health - to the tune of billions in lower economic participation and lost productivity annually.

"At a minimum, every Australian deserves to work in a psychosocially safe environment," says Dr. Mark Deady, the research lead at the Black Dog Institute’s Workplace Mental Health Research Program. In conversation with People Matters, he highlighted a few things that employers should pay attention to as they develop and execute workplace mental health programs, starting with the importance of data and evidence.

Look at where your tools and programs came from

Since the pandemic, wellbeing resources and tools have proliferated. And while it's encouraging, Deady says, to see the variety of different tools now available, the flip side is that workplaces may have trouble choosing one that works for them. 

His suggestion: look at who developed a tool or program, how it was developed, and how it was evaluated. Does the organisation behind it have a good track record? Is there strong data-based evidence for this particular tool's effectiveness, and was the evaluation done with scientific rigor?

"Since organisations have limited resources, it’s critical those resources are directed toward programs we know work...employers and employees deserve to know that the tools or programs they implement have been backed by research, " he said.

And, calling out the range of terminology now being used, he added: "Evidence-based programs will have undergone rigorous scientific testing whereas the term ‘evidence-informed’ is commonly used but can have different meanings. It pays to delve a little deeper into what providers mean by this, how programs have been developed, and how evaluation has or does occur."

Be proactive, not just reactive

Like physical health, mental health is something people tend to forget about until they or those around them are actually unwell. And that is often the approach employers take: everything's all right until it isn't.

"One of the common challenges that businesses face when implementing well-being initiatives is that they go straight to thinking about reactive measures – i.e. how do we respond to people in the organisation facing mental health challenges," Deady said.

His suggestion: don't zoom in on managing individual situations, but instead consider the underlying concepts and objectives involved in creating a mentally healthy workplace. He listed three pillars that are commonly used to guide mental health and wellbeing strategies: Protect, Promote, Respond.

Protect against harm: Protect mental health by mitigating workplace hazards and minimising harm

Promote good health: Promote a culture of good mental health that enhances workplace wellbeing

Respond to ill health: Respond to workplace distress and actively facilitate recovery.

These are not abstract pillars, but actual guiding principles that will direct how programs are chosen and implemented, and then how the response to individual situations is managed.

"To make meaningful change, workplaces must focus on building awareness of these pillars at all levels of an organisation. Investing in mental health and wellbeing training can be beneficial for building this understanding," Deady said.

A better way of building strategies

Organisations that haven't already incorporated a comprehensive mental health strategy can try this multi-level approach based off the Black Dog Institute's research:

Systems and Policy: policy and procedural arrangements within an organisation.

Operations and Team: initiatives that optimise interpersonal, team and general environments.

Job: initiatives that alter the design, delivery or content of the work tasks being performed.

Individual: programs that modify employee perceptions and responses to conditions/ experiences, rather than via workplace changes.

"To have a real and lasting impact on positive mental health in the workplace, it’s important to consider ways of working at all levels of an organisation," Deady said. "This can feel daunting, but it has the potential to be an incredible opportunity to take stock of the things that a business is doing well and also how to improve things. Genuine commitment is important priority here, rather than viewing this simply as a check-box exercise."

Photo: Mark Deady's profile on the Black Dog Institute page.