Stress, burnout, exhaustion: these have all become hot topics when it comes to employee retention and satisfaction. According to research by Mental Health America, “9 in 10 employees report that their workplace stress affects their mental health.” But given the events of the past few years — from a global pandemic to an increase in racially driven attacks — it’s important to recognize that stressors outside of work can affect employee performance as well.
If employers want their employees to be at their best, then supporting, protecting, and investing in employee mental health and wellbeing is a must. They must equally recognize that seeking mental and emotional support may not be the norm for all employees.
In fact, many employees may come from communities and backgrounds where seeking mental and emotional support may be uncommon or even downright stigmatized — particularly in the black community. This Black History Month, it's time to shine a light on ways that workplaces can empower black employees to seek the support they may need.
What is mental health?
Kristen Brooks, licensed clinical social worker and owner of Building Beyond Therapy LLC, describes mental health as "how well you’re doing in terms of your psychological and emotional wellbeing — how well you can function in your life, how well you can adapt to changes, and how you react to everyday life stressors.”
Labeling mental health is difficult. Many people may think mental health struggles mean anxiety or depression. But that's not always the case. “Look for a significant shift in baseline functioning,” says Brooks.
She emphasizes that a decline in mental wellbeing looks different for everybody, especially since depression and anxiety can present different symptoms for different people, it’s best not to focus on labels like depression and anxiety and instead focus on your unique symptoms.
Here are some changes to keep an eye on that may signal that you need some rest and perhaps some additional support:
- Irritability
- Hopelessness, helplessness
- Lack of motivation
- Changes in sleep (sleeping more or sleeping less)
- Changes in appetite (eating more or eating less)
- An intense desire to maintain control
Black mental health: common stigmas
People of color don’t get to leave racial and systemically-driven trauma at the door when they come into work. Nevertheless, these realities are likely to have profound effects on employees psychologically.
A recent Harvard Business Review study of mental health at work cites that “54% of respondents said that mental health is a diversity, equity, and inclusion issue, an increase from 41% in 2019.” Supporting mental health and wellbeing is about more than giving employees extra time off to decompress (though that can be helpful too).
It’s about recognizing that employees from different communities and backgrounds may be facing challenges outside work that can disproportionately affect their ability to perform their jobs. Failing to understand the wider context that impacts employees can lead to downward trends such as low morale and increased employee attrition.
Seeking help for mental health: attitudes and experiences
It’s understandable that black employees may feel reluctant to make use of sponsored mental health programs like therapy or coaching.
“The increased incidence of psychological difficulties in the black community is related to the lack of access to appropriate and culturally responsive mental health care, prejudice and racism inherent in the daily environment of black individuals, and historical trauma enacted on the black community in the medical field,” writes Thomas A. Vance, Ph.D. — postdoctoral research and clinical fellow at Columbia University.
Resistance to therapy may also be a cultural symptom. In a personal essay penned for the New York Times, writer Dana Givens shares, “When I was growing up in a predominantly black community in Harlem, therapy was stigmatized as something for people who could not handle challenges.”
Workplace programs supporting employees of color need to be sensitive to these beliefs and experiences. With a bit of extra knowledge and added empathy, employers can offer a range of mental health support that is not only beneficial but culturally relevant as well.
Tips for supporting employees’ mental health in the workplace
While employee mental health is recognized as increasingly important, developing programs that support each individual employee can be a challenge. Start by creating an environment where access to mental health resources is as diverse as the employees who’ll be using them.
“At the grassroots level, employees should be empowered to form mental health employee resource groups (ERGs) and other affinity groups, become mental health champions and start peer listening initiatives,” says Harvard Business Review’s research into mental health at work.
Here are some ideas for introducing robust mental health support in the workplace:
- Normalize talking about stress and stressful situations at work
- Train managers and leaders on how to have mental health-related conversations in the workplace, and provide them with a list of culturally competent resources
- Provide different paths and resources (from peer-to-peer to formal therapy)
- Advocate for benefits and insurance packages that cover mental health services
- Review paid time off and sick leave policies
Burnout can be a mentally- and emotionally-driven phenomenon, not just a consequence of overworking. And while it’s much more commonplace to talk about mental health at work, we need to be aware that there’s a lot more nuance to the mental health conversation and learn how to better support employees through these challenges.