Helping staff with mental health, more than a tick box, HR specialist

Mental health training for staff should be backed up with action and not just done to “tick a box”, a Shropshire-based employment law expert has warned.

Alasdair Hobbs, of Human Results in Telford, said investing in the wellbeing of their staff was an important responsibility for every business, but was not always done effectively.

He said: “From an employer’s perspective, mental health often gets overlooked until someone goes off sick, and if they are off for more than a couple of weeks with work-related stress, all of the statistics show they are unlikely to return.

“You are then left with the complexities of long-term absence and ultimately dismissal, or indeed fighting a constructive dismissal claim.

“It’s absolutely right that mental health has become more of a priority for businesses, and indeed in general society, and improving staff wellbeing is always in the best interests of everyone.

“However, there has been a tendency in recent years for employers to see mental health first aid training as something of a tick box exercise. 

“It’s tempting for businesses to sign up for mental health charters and other initiatives, all of which are laudable, but then fail to install the necessary culture and HR policies to provide a healthy working environment.”

Alasdair said ensuring that absence rates remained low was vital for the success of any business, particularly SMEs, and looking after their staff was integral to that.

He added: “The problem for SMEs is knowing where to invest what the business can afford, and mental health first aid training has been very popular in recent years, but there are other ways of looking at it.

“There are innovative ways of monitoring staff and collecting data to help an employer understand if there are any issues, but not every SME can afford to do that.

“I think most small employers are actually very good because ultimately they value their staff.

“Enabling things like flexible working practices and being sensible when it comes to booking holidays can go a long way to making employees feel valued and improving their mental health - possibly even more effective than placing all of your staff on a training course.”

For more advice about employment law and HR issues, visit www.humanresults.co.uk or call 01952 288361.