Mental health site launched

News | HSP
30.05.2008

Disability charity Shaw Trust has launched a new website giving employers and line managers comprehensive, easy-to-understand advice on how to deal with and help reduce mental ill health in the workplace.

The website offers guidance on the early warning signs of mental health conditions, how to talk to employees with ill-health issues, how to support employees who are off sick and how to create a more healthy workplace environment as a preventative measure.

It also explains employers' legal duties under the Disability Discrimination Act and offers employers and employees the opportunity to share their stories and advice.

Recent research commissioned by Shaw Trust found that only one in five employers has a policy for managing mental ill health in the workplace, and 70% of the 550 businesses surveyed admitted they didn't know enough about the legal requirements.

Shaw Trust's managing director Tim Cooper said: "When developing the site one of our main objectives was to create an online resource which would empower line managers to tackle the issue of mental ill health in a positive way.

"We are confident that managers from all industries will be able to benefit ... by being able to provide more supportive management, therefore improving employee retention, helping to increase productivity and profitability."

The new website is free to use and can be accessed here.