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In News
- Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) have issued guidelines to address mental health issues among the global workforce.
What is Work-related stress?
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Major Highlights by WHO and ILO
- Loss in economy and workforce
- Depression and anxiety are thought to account for 12 billion lost workdays annually, costing the world economy close to $1 trillion, according to the WHO.
- Countries having national programmes
- Five per cent of the working-age population had mental illness and only 35 percent of countries had national programmes for work-related mental health promotion in place.
- Increase in anxiety and despair
- COVID-19 caused a 25 percent increase in anxiety and despair, demonstrating how poorly governments anticipated its effects on mental health.
- The pandemic highlighted a persistent lack of mental health resources globally.
- Governments globally allocated just 2 per cent of their health budgets to mental health in 2020, with lower-middle-income nations allocating less than 1 per cent.
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Challenges
- Loss of productivity
- The individual’s well-being is a reason enough to act, but poor mental health can also affect a person’s performance and productivity.
- Socio-economic problems
- An unhealthy work culture accentuates broader socio-economic problems, such as inequality and discrimination, which affect mental health.
- Mobbing
- One of the most common workplace harassment is bullying or psychological assault, commonly known as mobbing.
- Other major challenges:
- Low salaries
- Excessive workload
- Few opportunities for growth or advancement
- Work that isn’t engaging or challenging
- Lack of social support
- Not having enough control over job-related decisions
- Conflicting demands or unclear performance expectations
Benefits of preventing stress in the workplace
- Reduced symptoms of poor mental and physical health
- Fewer injuries, less illness and lost time
- Reduced sick leave usage, absences and staff turnover
- Increased productivity
- Greater job satisfaction
- Increased work engagement
- Reduced costs to the employer
- Improved employee health and community wellbeing.
Way forward
- Training
- WHO has suggested manager training to avoid stressful work settings and assist distressed employees.
- Investments
- We need to invest in reshaping the working environment to stop stigma and social exclusion and ensure employees with mental health conditions feel protected and supported.
- Return to work
- The guidelines also suggested improved approaches to meeting the requirements of workers with mental health disorders and prescribed interventions that promote their return to work.
- Paid employment mechanisms
- It also offered paid employment mechanisms for people with severe mental health conditions. The guidelines emphasised the need for actions to protect medical, humanitarian and emergency personnel.
- Work-related stress is a management issue:
- Ensure a safe working environment.
- Make sure that everyone is properly trained for their job.
- De-stigmatise work-related stress by openly recognising it as a genuine problem.
- Discuss issues and grievances with employees, and take appropriate action when possible.
- Devise a stress management policy in consultation with the employees.
- Encourage an environment where employees have more say over their duties, promotional prospects and safety.
- Organise to have a human resources manager.
- Cut down on the need for overtime by reorganising duties or employing extra staff.
- Take into account the personal lives of employees and recognise that the demands of home will sometimes clash with the demands of work.
- Seek advice from health professionals, if necessary.
Source:DTE
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