Psychological and Social Support

Apr. 15

Written By Worker's Compensation Board Of Nova Scotia -

The level of social and emotional integration, trust and support within and among all work relationships.

What is psychological and social support?

Psychological and social support consists of all supportive social interactions at work, either with co-workers or supervisors. It refers to the degree of trust among co-workers and supervisors and the ability to interact and share emotions and feelings safely. It also refers to the level of help and assistance provided by others when one is performing tasks at work. Equally important are the workers’ perceptions and awareness of organizational support. When workers perceive organizational support, they may believe that their organization values their contributions, is committed to their psychological well-being, and could offer meaningful support when needed.

An organization with good psychological and social support would be able to state that:

The organization offers services or benefits that address worker psychological and mental health.
Workers feel part of a community and that the people they are working with are helpful in fulfilling the job requirements.
The organization has a process in place to intervene if an employee is experiencing distress while at work.
Workers feel supported by the organization when they are dealing with personal or family issues.
The organization supports workers who are returning to work after time off due to a mental health condition.
People in the organization have a good understanding of the importance of worker mental health.

This video was developed by The Mental Health Commission of Canada, in partnership with Ottawa Public Health with content adapted from The Mindful Employer.

Why is psychological and social support important?

The more psychological and social support workers have, the more involved, committed and satisfied they may feel. In general, supported workers are happier and more productive, want to stay working with the organization for the long-term, and are much more likely to help others and ‘go the extra mile’ in their work.

Psychological support can be especially helpful in protecting against distress and trauma at work. Workers who are emotionally distressed or dealing with a mental health issue may be more likely to seek and receive appropriate help. This helps them stay safe and productive at work – and, if absence from work is required, helps them get back to work faster.

Workers without psychological and social support are more likely to withdraw from work and have higher absenteeism rates. Conflict and employee turnover are more likely to occur. Work distress may lead to physical symptoms (such as fatigue or headaches) or emotional symptoms (such as anxiety or burnout). This can lead to increased costs, negative effects on productivity and a greater risk of accidents, incidents, and injuries.

FAQs

• Get a sense of your employees’ needs and concerns regarding mental health. Some ways to do this are conducting an anonymous survey, placing a suggestion box in a employee room, or adding mental health as an agenda item at a employee meeting. Share this information with all team members; this is a great first step in combating stigma towards mental health. It also demonstrates your organization’s commitment.
• Develop formal and informal networks to support employees in dealing with mental health issues. Regular monthly meetings and peer mentorship or coaching are great places to start.
• Widely share information on mental health and psychological resilience and wellness. Cover these topics in monthly e-newsletters or hold a webinar series on mental health. Make sure internal and external referral lists for community and mental health resources are available and shared widely. Communicate broadly about internal processes and supports for those who may be struggling to stay productive at work while dealing with personal or mental health issues.
• Create a workplace culture where it’s safe to discuss mental health issues without fear of discrimination or reprimand. Have senior leaders share their commitment to mental health. If appropriate, having leaders share their personal or family experiences can be a powerful way to demonstrate commitment.
• Consider adding psychological health and safety as a standing agenda item for regular employee meetings.
• Provide education to all employees on understanding signs and symptoms of mental health issues. Many public-domain, free resources exist; consider sharing these on a company intranet or through employee newsletters.
• Create opportunities for training and mentoring to enhance interpersonal and people management skills. Consider dedicating a certain amount of time or resources annually on workshop or continuing education opportunities. There are many virtual, on-demand training offerings which provide cost-effective (and often free) learning options.
• Provide specific training to leader so they can adequately support those who are facing possible mental health difficulties. Ensure they understand signs, symptoms, and how to start a conversation about mental health.
• Provide necessary tools and supports (including time and coaching) so leaders can succeed in psychologically supporting employees.
• Review the services of third-party providers of psychological and counselling supports to ensure evidence-based treatment approaches are being utilized. Ask your third-party providers to provide details on the credentials and approaches their providers take.
• Consider identifying and training internal champions to offer peer-to-peer support to those struggling with mental health issues.
• Strive to understand the root cause of issues. When, where and how did the communication breakdowns begin? What factors have contributed over time? What worker and workplace factors are contributing? Try to identify specific, actionable next steps that can be taken to resolve issues.
• Understand what historic, traditional, and systemic issues exist within the work environment, whether related to leaders, workers, or overall organizational culture. Brainstorm some specific, tangible ways these issues could be approached and updated.
• Encourage and model open and respectful workplace communication where individual and collective team strengths and weaknesses can be discussed. Ensure this across all levels of the organization.
• Encourage respectful workplace communication where mental health issues can be openly discussed in the same way physical health issues would be discussed.
• Ensure all employees are aware of internal and external benefits and resources to address workplace distress and how to effectively approach conflict.
• If possible, provide benefits that support worker mental health. If your organization does not have a benefits program, consider public domain resources that you can share (e.g. mental health screening tools, supported self-management workbooks). Many free, evidence-based resources exist.
• Provide information on early intervention supports (e.g. crisis line numbers, community agencies/support groups, registered mental health professional services).
• Have formal and informal accommodations for mental health issues. Formal accommodations are typically documented and ongoing, and have a medical reasoning, while informal are typically more time-limited or temporary. Consider creating return-to-work programs.
• Have processes to address any occupation-specific risks to psychological health, as well risks to specific communities and groups (e.g. members of the LGBTQIA2S+ community; workers who are newcomers to Canada, or who aren’t fluent in the main language(s) of the workplace.
• Maintain regular, supportive communication with those off work due to mental health concerns. Depending on the situation, this may be daily or weekly, but certainly should be at minimum monthly. Consider sending supportive ‘thinking of you’ messages. Keep team members informed on a need-to-know basis of important or meaningful workplace events or changes (e.g. a key team member retiring). Regularly ask if there is anything you or the workplace can do to help or support.
• When appropriate, support workers in finding regulated treatment providers who are trained in evidence-based treatment approaches. Publicly available resources for mental health issues are extremely limited, and navigating the system and knowing what to do and where to get help or support can be overwhelming. As such, the workplace can play a very important role in supporting workers.
• Have an identified team member who helps workers return to work and makes the process easy for that worker. Ensure this individual is knowledgeable about mental health and trained in psychologically safe skills, strategies, and approaches.
• Involve workers in their own return-to-work plans. Include a range of options for coping with mental health concerns as they may arise. Create customized return-to-work plans to ensure that a worker is able to stay at work, including strategies to deal with their symptoms or challenges occurring again. Ensure at least weekly check-ins for the first one to three months and continue longer as required.
• Conduct regular (e.g. yearly) employee surveys checking in on their status and mental health. Consider the free Guarding Minds at Work worker survey that provides a risk report of strengths and areas for improvement as they pertain to psychological health and safety and the national standard.
• Encourage active engagement from workers. Provide a platform for workers to voice their current needs when it comes to psychological health support. This can easily be a “what is working” versus “what is not working” discussion on an internal messaging channel or a standing agenda item on regular team meetings.
• Ensure leaders are comfortable in dealing with the difficulties that many workplaces and workers are increasingly facing. The reality is that human beings are incredibly complex, and managing issues related to people isn’t always simple or straightforward. Providing good training and support to leaders is good for them and good for workers.
• Strive to eliminate stigma and unfair treatment for those facing mental health challenges. This makes it more likely workers will reach out for help earlier. Early detection and treatment, in turn, reduces the impacts of mental health issues.

Next Steps

Committing to a psychologically and socially supportive workplace

A work environment where the organization is supportive of employees’ psychological health concerns and provides assistance as needed.
• Improved overall psychological health of employees.
• Increased productivity.
• Reduced employee turnover.
• Reduced costs from work absence (e.g. sick time, disability costs).
• Successful/sustainable return-to-work when there is an absence.
• Do issues related to psychological and social support present a greater risk to particular groups of employees (e.g. new employees, certain jobs, shift workers, etc.)?
• What are the strengths in your workplace in terms of psychological and social support (e.g. what do you do well and what should you continue doing)?
• What could your workplace do to improve in this area (e.g. what could you do more of and what could you do less of)?