Workplace Mental Health

What is the issue?

Workplaces can play an essential part in maintaining positive mental health. They can give people the opportunity to feel productive and be a strong contributor to employee wellbeing. Yet it can also be a stressful environment that contributes to the rise of mental health problems and illnesses. No workplace is immune from these risks and we cannot afford to limit our definition of occupational health and safety to only the physical.

With most adults spending more of their waking hours at work than anywhere else, addressing issues of mental health at work is vitally important for all people in Canada. Seventy per cent of Canadian employees are concerned about the psychological health and safety of their workplace, and 14 per cent don’t think theirs is healthy or safe at all. Such workplaces can take a detrimental personal toll as well as contribute to staggering economic costs.

About 30 per cent of short- and long-term disability claims in Canada are attributed to mental health problems and illnesses. The total cost from mental health problems to the Canadian economy exceeds $50 billion annually.  In 2011, mental health problems and illnesses among working adults in Canada cost employers more than $6 billion in lost productivity from absenteeism, presenteeism and turnover.

What are we doing?

The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) is committed to helping employers create and maintain mentally healthy workplaces by providing the tools, information, and support needed to ensure that every person in Canada can go to work knowing their organization recognizes the importance of psychological health and safety in the workplace.

The National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace (the Standard)

A voluntary set of guidelines, tools, and resources to guide organizations in promoting mental health and preventing psychological harm at work.

Watch this video to learn more about the Standard and why it is important to take action today.       

Supporting the implementation of the Standard – In all industries

• Resources to help organizations create more mentally healthy work environments.
• Case Study Research Project of over 40 organizations to identify and understand promising practices for implementing the Standard.
• Assembling the Pieces Toolkit a free online toolkit to support organizations working to implement the Standard.
• 13 Factors customizable posters reinforce positive actions to support psychological health and safety in the workplace. This poster series features the 13 psychosocial factors, as described in the Standard. Each poster has a customizable space enabling organizations to showcase internal programs and initiatives aligned with these factors.
• The MindsMatter tool was developed by CivicAction in collaboration with a group of employers, experts, and people with first-hand experience of mental health issues.  By the end of 2019, more than 1500 organizations have taken the assessment that now have the actions to benefit as many as 3.1 million employees. The Mental Health Commission of Canada is honoured to have been given stewardship of the tool as of January 2020. 

Supporting the implementation of the Standard – In healthcare settings

• By working with healthcare leaders to take action in alignment with the principles of the Standard within their organizations;
• By encouraging healthcare organizations to sign the Declaration of Commitment to Psychological health and Safety in Healthcare

Training tools *Updated!* 

• Mental Health First Aid Canada helps employees and managers increase their awareness of the signs and symptoms of the most common mental health problems and know- how to help if a colleague begins to experience a mental health problem or crisis.
• The Working Mind First Responders is specifically designed for first responders to help reduce the stigma that often surrounds mental health problems and mental illness.
• The Working Mind is intended to address and promote mental health and reduce the stigma of mental illness in a workplace setting, while increasing resiliency.
• Being a Mindful Employee: An Orientation to Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace is a free online course is recommended for anyone interested in learning more about how you can contribute to positive mental health at work.

Monthly webinars on workplace mental health                                                              

Learn more about our monthly webinar series created specifically to discuss psychological health & safety in the workplace.

The newly released white paper that helps to shed light on understanding mental health, mental illness, and their impacts in the workplace based on a recent survey that Morneau Shepell undertook in partnership the Globe and Mail.