Poor mental health in the workplace costs UK businesses over £8 billion per year.
That’s not just because 12.7% of all sickness days are due to mental health problems, but also because when your staff are below par, they are less motivated, less engaged and therefore less productive.
Peter Radford, founder of Business Coaching service Beyond This talks about the need for businesses to take staff wellbeing seriously, “No organisation can outperform its staff and yet I come across so many that are trying to achieve their aims without investing in their number one asset: their team.”
There are signs that the culture is changing though as more and more people recognise that mental health is something we all have: we all have up days and down days. Peter says, “My hope is that leaders recognise that not only can they help create a healthier, happier environment for their staff, they can also hugely improve their bottom line in the process.”
Peter suggests three ways that companies can begin to address staff wellbeing effectively:
- Invest in your middle leaders: the single most significant factor in the engagement of a staff member is their direct line manager. People don’t leave jobs, they leave bosses. If middle leaders are empowered to manage people effectively and compassionately, it makes a huge difference to the morale and wellbeing of the whole company.
- Consult your staff: Ask your staff about their wellbeing (and respond to what they say!) and involve them where appropriate in decisions that affect them. Just being asked gives people the sense that they are valued. Staff ‘buy-in’ and pride in the organisation as a whole is hugely increased in companies where genuine consultation takes place.
- Devote at least one training day per year to staff wellbeing: training that equips staff with the tools they need to manage their own health and wellbeing and which also develops the sense of team: being part of and believing in the vision of the company.
Peter Radford: founder of Beyond This (Business and Leadership Consultancy) www.beyondthis.co.uk
Sources: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/statistics/mental-health-statistics-mental-health-work