'You need to have an answer in place before an employee comes to you'
You shouldn’t just be offering mental health services to your employees, but to their families too. That’s according to Rich Jones, executive director of Heritage CARES, who spoke with HRD on how employers need to go further when it comes to substance abuse counselling.
Speaking from personal experience, Jones knows all too well the impact family issues can have on workplace productivity and morale. And this is something he’s dedicated to changing for good.
“It's really interesting when you look at the family dynamics here,” he told HRD. “We noted that 26% of employees report they're going home to active addiction - to people actively struggling with a substance use disorder. Those folks are stressed out beyond belief. They're half present at work. They're at their computers but they're not mentally there.
“I know this because I went through it. I thought I was a family expert, I thought I understood this, but it wasn't until I went through it with my own daughter that I realized exactly how it impacts the family. It takes you completely offline. And so, if you offer supportive services you have to offer to it to the family too, because many times it's the family member that has your employee off their game. Even if you don't care about people, even if you don't care about their mental health, if you want to get the most out of your business in terms of productivity and bottom line, you have to get support for these family members too.”
Jones suggests investing in authentic resources and guides in order to have practices in place before an employee comes to you.
“You need to have an answer in place before an employee comes to you,” he told HRD. “It’s no good approaching an employee, explaining that you think they have a problem, and then not having anywhere to send them. Have the practices in place first.”
Watch HRDTV’s full interview with Jones here.
