Making sure your employees are as healthy as they can be is one of the best ways you can both support your team as well as your company. While most employers seem to only focus on the physical health of employees, their mental health is just as important.
Employees commonly encounter work-related stress, burnout, and work disengagement, affecting not only their workplace performance but their overall wellbeing and quality of life. A negative work environment can have serious effects on an employee’s mental and physical health, and can even create or exacerbate other health issues.
Employees who feel good emotionally and mentally have more positive dispositions in the workplace. They are more adaptable, flexible, and resilient when carrying out their responsibilities. They are less likely to be adverse to challenges as well. When your team members’ mental health is thriving, they can be more engaging and make meaningful contributions to their teams.
On the flip side, employees who struggle with poor mental health have a more complicated time in the workplace. They struggle with their productivity and performance, finding it challenging to find resilience and confidence in their work. This can also lead to poor decision-making due to a lack of impulse control and unhealthy thoughts. Communication also becomes a challenge which can lead to misinterpretations and negative attitudes.
Employee engagement will be challenging too when employees lack focus and motivation due to poor mental health. An employee’s physical capability and daily functioning will also be affected. Employees whose mental health is struggling would find that cognitive performance may be low, their working memory not functioning properly, and their daily tasks and routines feel too heavy.
Having a healthier workplace environment for your employees also helps reduce employee turnover rates. In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers across the globe experienced “The Great Resignation,” a phenomenon wherein employees resigned from their current places of work mostly due to burnout and feeling disengaged from their work. The strain of the demands of keeping up with work while dealing with a global pandemic took a toll on a lot of people’s mental health, pushing them to seek better work conditions elsewhere.
Understand how your company lacks in providing mental health support for your employees. Creating, maintaining, and improving systems that support your employees’ mental health is imperative. These risk factors, if not addressed, can prove harmful to employees’ mental health.
If employees feel that they cannot turn to their employers to help them, their problems may go unaddressed or untreated. This can prove detrimental to their well-being and can greatly affect how they contribute as team members.
If the people in leadership fail to cultivate a culture that supports the well-being of their employees, then it is more likely that they will feel overworked and undervalued. Miscommunication in the workplace can happen more frequently due to poor management as well.
Employees who have no clear tasks or objectives often feel disengaged from their work. They can also feel like they are stationary, not feeling excited about the future of their careers.
When employees are unable to establish a work-life balance, this can easily aggravate stress and anxiety. This can also greatly contribute to burnout. Something as simple as paid holidays are essential to freshen one's mind.
A healthy workplace that respects boundaries and supports mental health and safety can be an incredible way to maintain an engaged workforce. Nurturing mental health can be accomplished with a two-pronged approach.
An employee’s mental health isn’t an isolated personal issue. Considering how much time they spend working, the organizational culture can have a big impact on alleviating mental health problems. Creating a healthy work environment equates to healthy employees that can provide the best results for the company.
If you want to support your employees and make sure they’re continuously engaged in their work, make your employee reviews simple and provide them with real-time metrics.
