Mental Health Awareness Week to highlight mental illness at
work
Mentor update 22/05/2012
The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) is
running National Mental Health Awareness Week 2012 this week. It is
intended to highlight the fact that one in six employees suffer
from a mental health problem at work.
Employers should pay more attention to breaking down taboos
about mental illness at work, according to experts who claim that
it’s among the last taboos in business. The issue is becoming
increasingly common and is costing the economy some £30 billion.
Experts claim that breaking down the barriers and helping people to
talk about their illnesses will help businesses to retain staff and
save money.
John Taylor, ACAS’s chief executive, said, “The stumbling block
at the moment is that many employers and managers shy away from
dealing with mental illness at work because it can be hard to pin
down and it is a very sensitive matter to deal with. People often
won’t talk about mental illness because they think it is something
disturbing that it is easier to avoid.”
Now, ACAS and Devon Partnership NHS Trust agency Workways, have
issued a guide for tackling mental illness at work. The steps
recommended to employers include raising awareness of the issues
among staff and managers and trying to spot the early signs of
mental illness in employees.
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