Improving mental health awareness and support in the workplace
The National Report Card on Mental Health and Suicide Prevention found one in five Australians will experience a mental health condition each year1.
More than half of employees who suffer mental health conditions will be absent for five or more work days annually, incurring significant costs for employers2.
More than ever, companies need to consider the culture of their workplace and the level of support available to employees.
"Employers have a large opportunity to positively impact their employee's mental health in the workplace," says Jennifer Cameron, Client Director, People Risk at Aon. "The first step is for companies to create an informed and supportive workplace culture that encourages employees to openly discuss mental health and develop policies that are flexible and non-discriminatory".
Increasing workplace awareness and support has a positive outcome for all parties. Employees suffering mental health issues will benefit from better interaction with co-workers, improved economic wellbeing and a sense of contribution and self-satisfaction, and employers will benefit from increased workforce productivity and reduced long-term costs.
"By implementing mental health programs in the workplace, employers can significantly cut levels of absenteeism and presenteeism which currently cost Australian organisations billions of dollars per year3," says Cameron. "Providing adequate levels of support for stress and other mental health conditions has also been proven to impact the productivity and engagement levels of many organisations."
Aon Risk Solutions offers a full suite of workplace health, wellbeing and risk solutions.
Find out more about our Mental Health First Aid courses.
1 National Mental Health Commission, A Contributing Life: the 2012 National Report Card on Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, November 2012.
2 National Mental Health Commission, A Contributing Life: the 2012 National Report Card on Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, November 2012, p 108.
3 Medibank Private. (2005). The Health of Australia's Workforce.
About Aon
Aon plc (NYSE:AON) is a leading global provider of risk management, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, and human resources solutions and outsourcing services. Through its more than 72,000 colleagues worldwide, Aon unites to empower results for clients in over 120 countries via innovative and effective risk and people solutions and through industry-leading global resources and technical expertise. Aon has been named repeatedly as the world’s best broker, best insurance intermediary, reinsurance intermediary, captives manager and best employee benefits consulting firm by multiple industry sources. Visit www.aon.com for more information on Aon and www.aon.com/manchesterunited to learn about Aon’s global and principal partnership with Manchester United.