Almost half of New Zealand employers in the dark over employee mental health: Survey

The pandemic has cemented a place for talking about mental health in the workplace, but how many employers actually know how to support their staff’s psychological wellbeing?

Reducing the stigma around mental health is an essential step in improving the wellbeing of New Zealanders, but progress will be minimal without the accompanying training and support mechanisms in place.

New research from Employment Hero has indicated that almost half (44%) of the 508 employers surveyed don’t know how to adequately support their employees’ mental health, showing there’s still a long way to go to improving the day-to-day lives of working Kiwis. Worryingly, employers are split over the responsibility of businesses in supporting mental wellbeing. Half of those surveyed believe workplaces shouldn’t bear the burden of their employees’ mental health problems.

In contrast, only 20% of employees believe the same. The difference highlights a significant expectation gap between employers and employees. But if the pandemic has shown us anything, it’s that physical and mental health go hand in hand. Employers must reframe wellbeing to include both brain and body to really keep their workforce healthy.

Read more: Manager triggers debate over employee who took a mental health day

Speaking to HRD, ANZ Chief People Officer of Employment Hero, Alex Hattingh, said some businesses may be struggling to support employees because managers don’t feel well-trained or prepared to facilitate what can sometimes be a difficult conversation. It’s only natural for managers to feel unqualified to speak about mental health if they don't feel supported themselves. But having a mechanism in place such as an EAP is a valuable tool for managers to call upon when employees want to take the next step and seek expert help.

“It’s so important to train managers to allow for what you would call psychological safety for their employees so they feel safe enough to open that conversation which might be admitting that they’re  not coping well with lockdown or the uncertainty of Covid,” Hattingh said.

“The survey also showed that New Zealanders are very worried about their physical health and their financial health as well and so it’s about opening that conversation, giving the manager the tool for when they feel uncomfortable or perhaps it’s getting too personal, to say this is where you can go for more help.”

Asides from EAP, there are a number of simple ways to promote mental wellbeing in the workplace. Leading by example is one of the easiest tactics to spark behavioural change, reminding employees – particularly the younger cohort of workers – that it more than OK to take breaks and be offline while working from home.

HR leaders should be encouraging their C-suite executives and managers to demonstrate the behaviour they want to see in employees. Hattingh said this is something Employment Hero’s CEO Ben Thompson regularly does at all hands meetings, reminding employees that is OK to be struggling with things like homeschooling in lockdown and to go easy on themselves during such challenging times.

This idea of storytelling through events like company meetings or even corporate communication is a simple, effective, and free way of signalling to employees that wellbeing comes first. After all, an exhausted and burnt-out workforce is no good to anyone.

Read more: Revealed: Top reasons Kiwi employees are asking for help

Hattingh said it’s also important to be cognisant of the fact that the pandemic has impacted different people in different ways. Great managers are those who are attuned to the specific needs of their employees, whether they’re millennial workers struggling with social isolation or parents juggling home schooling and work.

“When COVID first hit in Australia, I made sure our managers were very aware of expats because the UK and the US were not doing nearly as well as Australia was,” she said. “Still now, many have no idea when they might get home and have the opportunity to see their family so certainly it’s about making sure you are asking the question ‘how are you coping?”

These simple behavioural strategies can be adopted straight away and at no cost, paving the first steps to helping managers feel more prepared for talking and supporting the mental health of their team.