Ed Mantler, Vice President, Programs and Priorities@edmantler_MHCC

Mental Health in the Workplace: The New MHCC Standard

Stigma

500,000

$51 Billion

• Absenteeism• Presenteeism • Disability claims• Injuries / illnesses• Grievances /complaints• Turnover• Legal implications

The Cost of Doing Nothing

National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety

Psychological Support

Organizational Culture

Clear Leadership & Expectations

Civility & Respect

Psychological Demands

Growth & Development

Recognition & Reward

Involvement & Influence

Workload Management Engagement

Balance

Psychological Protection

Supportive Physical Environment

Factors Impacting our Mental Health at Work

Case Study Research Project

Three year national study (Feb 2014 ‐March 2017)

• Break down barriers to implementation and identify gaps and challenges

• Determine promising practices

• Build a strong business case for implementation

• Inform future revisions to the Standard

• Identify tools/resources to help with implementation

• Create a blueprint for future organizations that wish to implement the Standard

Following more than 40 organizations

Participating Organizations

Define a business case

Ensure commitment throughout the organization 

Communicate widely and effectively

Build a psychological health and safety culture

Ensure adequate resources for implementation

Select the best actions for your organization

Consider psychological health and safety in times of change

Measure the impact of implementing the Standard

Sustain implementation efforts

Nine Promising Practices Uncovered

Three key 

lessons learned

Ensure commitment throughout 

the organization.

• Transformational leadership

• Employee engagement

• Clarity of implementation objectives

Commitment includes:

Communicate widely and effectively.

• Ongoing dissemination of information about psychological health and safety initiatives

• Use of psychological health and safety language

• Assessment of employee awareness (and trust)

Effective communication includes:

Ensure commitment throughout the organization

Select actions that fit your organizational 

needs.

• Based on commitment and planning

• Supported by evidence of effectiveness

• Customized to fit the organization

• Evaluated

Successful and sustained implementation occurs when actions are:

Implementation Progress

60% 61%68%

40% 42%

55%

68%71%

66%

47% 48%

65%

75%78%

74%

58% 59%

72%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Commitment,leadership andparticipation

Planning Implementation Evaluation andcorrective action

Managementreview

Overall

Adhe

rence Scores in %

Elements of Implementation 

Participating Organizations' Achievement Scores (aggregate) on the Implementation Phases of the Standard 

Baseline Interim Final

Tools and Resources

Assembling the Pieces: 

A practical guide to help employers implement the 

Standard

Over 8000 downloads to date!

Approach to Implementing the 

Standard:

1. Build you foundation

2. Identify Opportunities

3. Set Objectives4. Implement the Plan

Video Series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2NuAPXp8ohZmoVaECl6sRiV9lQ25XkId

Facilitator’s Guide:http://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/sites/default/files/2017‐02/Workplace%20Videos%20Facilitator%20Guide_ENG.pdf

Access Videos ‐ 13 Workplace Factors

Employee Orientation Tool

Online Employer Toolkit

Mental Health First Aid

The Working Mind:Workplace Mental Health & Wellness

• A structure exists to help guide your workplace mental health strategy

• Research shows it can be effectively implemented

• You have already started on your journey

• There are lots of existing tools and resources to help you move forward

Key Takeaways

Ed MantlerVice President, Programs and PrioritiesMental Health Commission of CanadaEmail:    emantler@mentalhealthcommission.caTwitter: @edmantler_MHCC

Visit : www.mentalhealthcommission.ca

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