Following a growing focus on mental health in the workplace, Dubai-based FinTech NOW Money has shared its top tips on how to manage mental health in the workplace.
Following the news that 34% of employees in UAE’s corporate sector reported feeling anxious and 21% reported feeling depressed, Dubai-based payroll and banking provider NOW Money is urging businesses to reconsider mental health in the workplace.
According to the study by the Business for Wellbeing Council, 50% of those who were depressed and 45% of those who were anxious were looking to change jobs and blamed workplace burnout and the absence of work-life balance as the key reasons for employees reporting poor mental health.
The UAE government has responded to these mental health issues with the new Labour Law (Federal Decree-Law No.33 of 2021), designed in part to better support mental health and wellness.
To help combat this growing issue, Dubai-based FinTech NOW Money is highlighting the importance of positive mental health at work, which alongside their financial inclusion agenda, aims to improve the social and economic well-being of their customers.
The social inclusion company’s top ways how to manage mental health in the workplace are below:
- Improved and more open communication
Effective communication between managers and employees helps control time and task planning and is the most important step a company can take to support and improve mental health and employee well-being.
- Show authenticity when talking about mental health
Removing the stigma associated with mental health at work can foster a community of openness and mutual empathy. Managers and executives who want to help workers can lead the way by being authentic about mental health struggles they have encountered if any.
- Check-in with employees experiencing low productivity
Managers and executives should have a friendly and welcoming aura that will make workers comfortable speaking to them about mental health issues. However, they must also learn to take the initiative in this regard.
- Flexible work arrangements
Newfound flexibility from remote work has led to better well-being. The various types of flexibility that should be on offer to staff include freelance contracts, telecommuting, flexible schedules, alternative schedules, and part-time schedules.
- Well-being initiatives and programs (meditation groups, no-email policies, etc.)
It is vital to have concrete policies that will improve the physical health and mental well-being of workers. These policies, to be effective, must be employee-driven. While managers and executives can launch top-down policies, it is better to first listen to employees and give them what they want.
- Provide employee recognition and improve their sense of purpose
Employees eventually come to a point where recognition and a sense of fulfillment become more important than the salary – finding purpose at work is a key mental health factor.
- Supportive and friendly work culture
Creating a supportive friendly work culture where employees maintain a kind disposition towards one another is a goal that leaders can pursue. Leaders should work to create a work culture characterized by mutual respect, friendliness, empathy, care, and concern.
- Safe work environment
A work environment where discrimination, bullying, sexual harassment, and injustice thrive will be a goldmine of mental health challenges. If all of these factors can be effectively and consistently implemented in workplaces across the UAE, then mental health in the workplace will strengthen, bolstering productivity, team output, and ultimately business performance.
The Blog received on Mail
