Accepting this new normal isn’t easy for many people. Work from home can be overwhelming for a few as the work hours stretch over time. Although the concept of work from home does ease out the job situation. The bigger question that arises is what about the employee mental health. Is being nice as an employer the answer? You might think for a moment, do I need to think about my employee mental wellness?
Well, to be honest, YES. You should be concerned. To ease your queries, let me tell you, it’s not a new concept. A lot of companies have proposed employee mental wellness activities and are doing fantastically well. They have stepped out of their comfort zone and have gotten into their employees’ bubbles for a change. And to your surprise, 95% of companies worldwide are set to focus on employee mental health in 2021.
Microsoft Cares
Big tech giants like Microsoft have taken this onto a different level. They have an initiative called ‘Microsoft Cares’ where they take mental health initiatives as a serious matter. The company has begun a confidential counselling service designed to care for employees in a balanced way. Microsoft’s vision through this program is to support its employees maturely.
Not just them, they are willing to help their immediate families also. The enterprise has appointed the best counsellors and wellness coaches who are available 24/7. Their employees can reach out to them through mobile apps, e-workshops, easy access charts, and almost all modes of communication you can think of. There’s more - Every month, Microsoft conducts a 1-on-1 session with the counsellors on a variety of topics suggested by their employees.
Now, that’s a way to support your employees’ mental health. (Can you hear, “Well done, Microsoft!” in the background?)Talk about motivating people to join the enormous firm.
How does it help the employees?
Employees have often shared a willingness to join a company that looks after their mental health as well. And the results speak for themselves. As you know, today, Microsoft has offices all over the world, and people are more than enthusiastic about being a part of the giant’s network. It builds a positive work culture and reflects the care in the corporate world, which sometimes seems hard to find.
Read: World mental health day
Amazon’s Work Benefits
Amazon has outdone itself with the employee wellbeing at work. Covering not just mental but every physical need, right from best health insurance to maternity leaves, Amazon provides a plethora of work benefits anyone would be a tad jealous of. Standing firmly with their employees, Amazon has thoughtfully implemented mental wellness employee program.
Amazon offers free counselling services 24/7 for every employee. So if anyone ever feels like they are having a bad day, all they need to do is, pick up the mobile and dial the number. Oh, there’s more - Amazon employees get 3 free counselling sessions in person or virtual per year. Now, that considerate of them. The virtual session would work wonders considering the current situations worldwide. The help doesn’t end here; if any employee needs any kind of legal or personal help, then also, they can count on Amazon.
A little help goes a long way. And nowadays with the long working hours, one can’t help but be grateful to their company for being so thoughtful and helpful.
How does it help the employees?
Having a stable mind at work will take you ahead, but having an employer who not only understands but supports you through a tough time is truly bliss in every sense of the word. It builds an upbeat band of trust between the employee and the company. As a matter of point, a lot of employees feel privileged working with such an open-minded firm.
Read: Promoting mental health in workplace
Google’s Attempt on Fighting Mental Health Issues
If there’s one king of the jungle, it’s got to be Google. While everyone is suffering from the current pandemic, Google made sure its employees don’t. In July, it announced to give all its employees Work From Home till mid-2021, as they knew coping with the WFH scenarios would be a bit difficult. As people joined offices from home, they had a lot on their plate.
Managing the house, kids, and the job took a toll on everyone, of course. Google tackled this mental frustration was with a creative video series. It launched a line of videos called ‘Meet The Moment’ where each part is focused on essential topics like sleep, anxiety, breathing, parenting and more. Each video lasts up to 6 minutes, encouraging people to take inspiration from the world’s most resilient figures. Google launched this series virtually, and in one month, nearly 30,000 Google employees have watched the video.
Talking about something going viral, happy thoughts seem like the best medicine right now. Not only this, Google has its employee wellness program called gPause. As much as tech-savvy people know how to run the world, they also know when to rest. Google offers zen-centric meditation practices to all its employees, where meditation 101, search inside yourself and many stress-reducing classes are conducted. It does seem like if you can’t avoid workplace stress, then getting creative about it surely gets you across the finish line. This promotes
How does it help the employees?
Well, isn’t it obvious at this point? Just the thought of starting a movement was enough for Google to make ‘gPause’ a core office culture. People from across the globe have implemented this program and have found a unique way of reducing stress at work.
Read: Ways to improve mental health at workplace
What You Need to Know
Beating stress begins with understanding the importance of it in the first palace. Many companies still fail to recognize the need for a employee wellness program but should consider it nonetheless. Because when it comes to being friendlier for your employees, all you’ll be taking back would be great reviews, better efficiency and collaborative culture. Big or small, an employee wellness program with the facets of employee mental health would be a good place to start bridging the gap between you and your people.
Take a look at the corporate wellness program guide curated by Pazcare to understand and design corporate wellness programs for your employees.
Read: Company culture examples
How to build comprehensive corporate mental health programs?
Companies often struggle when it comes to building robust mental health programs for their employees. 94% CHROs believe that having comprehensive corporate mental health programs will result in a motivated and productive workforce.
Here’s how you can build comprehensive corporate mental health programs for your employees:
- Conduct a Needs Assessment
The first step in building a corporate mental health program is to identify the needs and preferences of your employees. Conduct surveys, focus groups or one-on-one interviews with employees to identify their needs and concerns.
- Develop a Plan
Based on the needs assessment, develop a comprehensive mental health plan that outlines specific initiatives and activities that address the identified needs. This may include employee training, mental health screening, access to mental health services, and creating a supportive workplace culture.
- Train Leaders and Managers
Leaders and managers play a critical role in supporting employee mental health. Provide training and resources to help them recognize the signs of mental health issues, how to approach employees, and how to support employees in getting help.
- Promote Mental Health Awareness
Increase employee awareness and reduce the stigma around mental health by promoting mental health awareness initiatives such as Mental Health Awareness Month, mental health education, and hosting mental health-related events.
- Provide Access to Mental Health Services
Make it easy for employees to access mental health services by providing resources such as an employee assistance program (EAP), telemedicine services, or counseling services.
- Foster a Supportive Workplace Culture
Create a supportive workplace culture that encourages employees to prioritize their mental health, supports work-life balance, and provides a safe and non-judgmental environment for employees to discuss mental health issues.
- Evaluate and Continuously Improve
Continuously evaluate the effectiveness of the mental health program and make adjustments based on employee feedback and outcomes data. Overall, building a comprehensive corporate mental health program requires a commitment to addressing mental health as an organizational priority and a willingness to invest in the resources needed to support employee mental health.
Take care of your employee mental health with Pazcare
The workplace productivity automatically increases when you take care of the mental health of your employees. It also helps in employee loyalty and retention. Now with Pazcare you can enable corporate wellness programs for employees which comes with a lot of benefits like wellness sessions, personalized therapy sessions, unlimited doctor consultations, exclusive healthcare packages for women and many more. You can level up your benefits program by also providing them with tailor-made group medical insurance policy, group accident insurance and group life insurance.
Have a question? Talk to our sales team to gain more insights on the plan and get competitive pricing for your team
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