The Crucial Link: Mental Health & Workplace Safety

In recent years, the importance of mental health in the workplace has gained significant attention. Along with its obvious impacts on employees’ overall wellbeing, it also has direct impacts on their safety in the workplace.

Depression interferes with a person’s ability to complete physical job tasks about 20% of the time and reduces cognitive performance about 35% of the time (CDC, 2019). By understanding and being aware of common indicators of employee mental health struggles, safety professionals have the opportunity to proactively approach mental health concerns before they develop into safety hazards.

Making sure that employees’ have a supportive work environment which prioritizes their mental health will allow you to maintain a safe workplace. Only 29% of participants in the American Psychological Association’s (APA) 2023 ‘Work in America’ survey reported that their employer offers an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). These programs can often be a difference maker for an employee’s mental health and ultimately improve their ability to work safely. Moreover, an existing issue is that far too often, employees are either unaware of resources available to them, or are unlikely to make use of them if they think their peers aren’t. Research published by the Harvard Business Review found that employees are more likely to use mental health benefits when they hear that colleagues use them too and that they want employers to speak more openly about mental health (Giurge et al., 2024). Evidently, implementing measures to destigmatize mental health concerns is crucial.

Integrating mental health considerations into safety protocols would reinforce the importance of mental health within the workplace. Apart from Safety leaders and other management having regular check-ins, the implementation of a peer support program can be beneficial (Newman, 2022). Having a set of employees at your workplace as trained peer supporters can bridge the gap between other employees and those offering professional mental health support that may not understand the nuances of the company and its culture. Additionally, risk assessments and safety planning should account for the effects of work conditions, schedules, and organizational structure on employee mental health. This will ensure that potential detrimental factors are identified an addressed early. Regular updates of these assessments will be necessary to be effective.

Addressing mental health in the workplace is not just a case of employee well-being, it is a significant aspect of workplace safety. According to the APA, employees experiencing high levels of stress are more than twice as likely to be involved in a workplace accident. Proactively integrating mental health support into safety measures will lead to a healthier, and safer work environment.

References

• Cohn, J. B., & Wardlaw, M. I. (2016). Financing Constraints and Workplace Safety. The

• Journal of Finance, 71(5), 2017-2057.