While most businesses in Australia focus much on the physical wellbeing of their employees, nowhere near enough are placing importance on helping staff stay mentally fit. Here we look at the importance of wellbeing champions to Australian businesses and how learning and development is available to help instil a supportive culture in your workplace.
Look at most businesses over a certain size operating in Australia, and they’ll have made provisions for many of the factors that are commonplace. HR, fire wardens, first aiders and occupational health consultants are considered standard elements in most workplaces, illustrating the ongoing focus on supporting the physical health of employees - but what about mental health?
While all of the things we just mentioned are entirely valid, the impact of poor mental health can be just as profound, leading to absenteeism, poor productivity and a lack of engagement. So, it’s logical to ask the question - where are the mental health first aiders? Where are the wellbeing champions able to help those who are suffering with issues that others can’t see?
A Compelling Business Case
There is a compelling business case for investing in professional development courses that focus on mental health and installing a mental wellbeing champion in any workplace. Official figures on the subject show that for every dollar spent on wellbeing in the workplace, the return is in the region of $4. In any other scenario, this is a fantastic return and one that most would embrace.
Even the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared work-related stress as a real phenomenon, so more needs to be done to help people deal with stress coming from work and all the pressure that can come from the home. Putting the human aspect aside, it’s foolish to ignore something that can have such a significant impact on your bottom line.
An Increasingly Important Factor to Businesses
A common objection raised when discussing investing in workplace mental health learning and development is cost. “How much is it?” and “Can we afford it?” are predictable responses, but this illustrates that focus is being placed in the wrong place entirely. Ask the same manager how much they lose because of staff turnover and sick days, and it often dwarfs the investment we’re talking about.
These things are inextricably linked - something that’s supported by a survey that shows over 50% of people would consider leaving a job if management didn’t place a high value on mental health. The great businesses do this well, with trained personnel who can spot those subtle warning signs that mental health has become impacted.
There’s no right or wrong way of going about things, so long as the focus on mental health underpins everything else. When supported sufficiently, employees are almost always more engaged and more productive, allowing your company to thrive and grow.
Grow Your Business with Happy Balanced Teams
Mental health champions in business play a vital role, helping to support the wellbeing of your teams with the same focus and energy that’s historically been put into protecting physical health. At Learning Lounge, we offer a wide range of mental health professional development courses that are video-based and modular, allowing knowledge to be gained around the working day.
If you’d like to know more about the industry-approved training we provide that can be leveraged to help your business grow and thrive, visit us today at www.learninglounge.online. There you’ll find everything you need to know, as well as our entire training resource library that can be obtained by requesting your free info pack via the homepage.
Alternatively, to speak to us directly about how our learning and development options can help take your business profits to the next level, call our friendly experts on 1300 611 404 today.
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