And more employers should sign up to the charity’s mental health first-aid training – which trains individuals to provide support to those with mental health issues in the workplace, James Le Feuvre added.
He made the comments after figures from the UK released yesterday show that up to 300,000 people with long-term mental health problems have to leave their jobs each year. The Thriving At Work report also claims that poor mental health costs the UK economy up to £99 billion each year.
According to the latest figures in Jersey, 608 people claimed Long Term Incapacity Allowance due to depression last year. The figures, which were within the Social Security Minister’s annual report, show that last year 131 claims were made due to anxiety and 108 due to stress.
Meanwhile, the number of prescriptions for anti-depressants last year was 98,347, a four per cent rise compared to 2015.
The Thriving At Work report makes 40 recommendations about how employers and the UK government can better support employees to remain at work. Companies are now being encouraged to include a section on employee health in their annual reports – of which only 11 per cent of companies currently do.
Mind Jersey has been running mental health first-aid training, which helps people recognise the symptoms of mental-health problems as well as provide early assistance, for the past two years.
Mr Le Feuvre said: ‘It’s really important to encourage people to stay in work and there should definitely be people around to talk to if you are not feeling so great – that can make all the difference.
‘If you have got a healthy workforce and people feeling positive that can only be a good thing for employers.
‘We have delivered our mental health first-aid training to a significant number of workplaces now.
‘If you cut your hand at work then you know who to talk to and they will help you. Mental health first-aiders do the same thing. They don’t do anything technical – they just find time for someone.’
Beth Moore, manager of the Jersey Recovery College – which offers free courses around mental health, said: ‘Every member of our team has experienced a mental-health difficulty or they have cared for someone who has, and we prioritise looking after our collective mental health above everything. The team checks in with each other regularly and we have dedicated line-management time where we can discuss our mental health.
‘We all have “wellbeing at work” plans and the plans outline what can affect our mental health at work, what signs to look for when mental health is deteriorating and what we can do to help.’
To find out more about Mind Jersey’s mental health first aid training visit: mindjersey.org/partners/mental-health-first-aid.
