Mental well-being in the workplace
The mental well-being of employees plays vital part in their motivation, productivity and attendance at work. Stress and depression are unfortunately commonplace problems in many workplaces and employers have a statutory responsibility under Health & Safety Legislation to monitor and manage workplace stress in order to reduce its incidence. Offering affected employees access to counselling is one way in which employers can discharge this duty, reduce levels of stress-related sickness absence and create a healthier, more productive working environment.
How serious is the problem?The HSE estimated that 12.8 million working days were lost though stress or depression related sickness absence in the year 2004/2005. The CBI estimates that this costs industry £12 billion per annum. In 2006 the London School of Economics Depression Report found that 1 in 6 people suffered from depression or chronic anxiety - a problem that affects 1 in 3 families.
The problem is very big indeed. As one of the largest counselling centres in Surrey we believe that we are well placed to help employers reduce the risk of the detrimental financial, operational and legal consequences that can arise from mental health problems.
