Eliminating illness in the workplace

The inability to concentrate, an unusual increase in errors, frequent tardiness, increased sick days, and lack of enthusiasm are all signs of depression.  Managers should be aware of  these signs in order to have a healthy workplace.  Manager should also know what to do when their employees display these behaviors. 

Managers and employers do not have to diagnose an employee’s problem.  They just have to be aware, offer assistance and support, and guide them to the programs and resources that will help them work through some of the issues and problems they are having. 

Depression is the second leading cause of disability in Canada.  Depression affects about 3 million Canadians, but employees strongly hide depression at work.  Depression should not be looked at as just affecting mental health.  Programs and initiatives should address improving overall employee health. 

“On average, Canadian workers report to work, despite being sick or exhausted, six times a year. This and other factors are increasingly being recognized as a drain on productivity,” “In a workplace with 500 employees, this translates into 3000 workdays annually that are being lost.”

The reasons employees come to work instead of staying at home or getting the help they need are: deadline pressures, increasing workloads, fear of increasing their colleague’s workload, and that they are too stressed to stay at home.

There are consequences for an organization when the physical and mental health of employees is ignored.  These consequences include: having lost productivity, higher turnover, decreased morale, and higher health claims and costs.

Employers should be recognize that investing in a healthy work/life balance program will in the long run improve productivity and increase their ability to attract new talent and keep talent they already have.

Proactive, preventative measures and early intervention is important in aiding and eliminating workplace health issues.

Read more here

Posted by: suhujitha on 2009-03-18 13:10:20

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