2nd of February is “Time to Talk Day” in the United Kingdom. This awareness day focuses attention on mental health, one of the most pressing issues for organisations in 2023. However, the need to create an open environment for employees to talk about mental health must be balanced with psychological safety, meaning support that helps rather than hinders and gives those offering support clear boundaries and guidelines. This balancing act is something that many companies struggle with.

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The last 12 months have been challenging and ongoing uncertainty suggests we need to be especially supportive of our mental health as we head into 2023. Responsible and progressive organisations must help create and environment that supports employee mental wellbeing, both for the good of the individual and the productivity and output of the organisation. This approach coupled with individuals engaging in activities and techniques that promote good mental health offers a firm grounding on which to develop resilient individuals

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Lou Campbell, co-founder and programmes director of Wellbeing Partners, believes that the phrase '(quiet quitting) is disrespectful to hard-working people that have experienced very difficult times. “This trend labelled quiet quitting comes from a moment in history where people have played a huge role in keeping the economy afloat throughout the pandemic,” Campbell says. “People carried on working long hours dealing with very difficult situations and that has led to a high degree of burnout.”

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Lou Campbell, counsellor and programmes director of Wellbeing Partners, explains this point further: ‘The emphasis is proactive wellness, processing difficulties before they become a crisis and normalising this as part of the workplace culture. This emphasis helps people engage earlier and helps remove the perceived stigma amongst some men about accessing mental health support.’ It is encouraging that men are finally opening up to the idea of looking after their mental health. As we move towards December, let’s not lose sight of this fact and instead capitalise on the great steps forward men are making with their health.

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“Ignorance of the wider issues affecting staff engagement is often at the root of quiet firing and there is a clear answer to this – communication, communication, communication! If a manager is not happy with the effort or output from an employee, they need to address the issue head on to identify the underlying causes.”

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"To suggest that carving out some work life balance for one’s own health and wellbeing is the same as ‘quitting’ is a complete nonsense, and it’s time to stop using this stupid phrase. Let’s show some respect to hard working people.” “The phrase ‘quiet quitting’ is a dystopian phrase that needs to be halted. If people are working their contractual hours, that is ‘working’ not ‘quitting’ and to suggest otherwise is an insult to hard working people who have kept their companies and organisations afloat over these pandemic years."

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In a statement for World Mental Health Day today (10 October), Lou Campbell, employee counsellor, wellbeing coach and programmes director at Wellbeing Partners, claimed HR professionals have been forced to seek alternatives to “overstretched” employee assistance providers. Campbell said many workers were being “palmed off” as a result, and HR teams were being called upon to support “distraught employees”.

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James Milford, head of behavioural sciences at Wellbeing Partners, said that we are “a society already pummeled and suffering”. He added: “The cost of living crisis hits at the fundamentals of our lives, the things that make us feel safe like food, warmth and shelter – things that seemed settled for many until recent months. The crisis – and its endless coverage in the media – is creating a huge amount of uncertainty as no one really knows how long this is going to go on for or just how much it will impact us financially." This is having a massive impact on people’s mental health. We have not evolved to handle ongoing uncertainty very well, and as such stress, depression and anxiety are rising. “This comes on the back of two-plus years of pandemic and global uncertainty that has already seen a massive rise in mental health issues

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‘It is a fact that most employers are picking up the burden of mental health care in the UK for their employees, and providing them with high-quality mental health support. But where is the outrage that everyone else is being left to fend for themselves without a functioning mental health service on the NHS?’ ‘Chronic underfunding by the government over the past decade, plus a complete absence of furore that roughly 12% of the British population needs mental health support but cannot even get onto the NHS waiting list for it is absolutely staggering. Why is there no coverage in the media of this disparity, this two-tiered mental health system in our society? How is the government getting away with this?’

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Employers that cultivate psychologically safety and encourage staff to express their views and vulnerabilities can show care for existing employees whilst also making themselves more appealing in the fight for skills and talent. However, many organisations find themselves struggling to stay on the right side of the boundaries when it comes to conversations around employees’ mental health, with few getting it right.

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