In any given week approximately 500,000 Canadian workers will be absent from work due to a mental health issue. In Canada, mental health problems, such as anxiety and depression, account for 30% of short-term and long-term disability claims and 70% of disability costs.
Given the statistics noted above, as an employer, are you doing everything you can to protect your employees and help prevent psychological injuries in the workplace?
In 2016, the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board changed their stance on accepting psychological injury claims. A presumption clause was added to make it easier for workers to prove their psychological injury occurred at work. In the past three years, our industry has already seen a rise in psychological injury claims.
“It is not unreasonable to predict that in 10 years from now, 40% of all Workers’ Compensation Board costs could come from psychological injuries. Those who are proactive in this issue will continue to succeed, whereas those who are not will be in real trouble.” ~ George Marshall, CEO, Service Hospitality
A few questions to consider at your organization:
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What does this mean for your workplace?
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Have you thought about the steps you can take as an employer to help reduce the amount of psychological injury claims/costs and promote the health and safety of your workers, not just physically, but mentally as well?
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Have you implemented the 13 factors in your workplace?
The National Standard for psychological health and safety in the workplace is a great resource for integrating mental health safety into your workplace. According to the National Standard, there are at least 13 factors that can affect a worker’s health.
When you look at your workplace, have you accounted for these 13 factors?
How can Service Hospitality assist you?
Psychological Health & Safety Audit
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Compare what you have in place with the CSA Standard through Service Hospitality’s audit.
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Audits result in an individualized action plan with clearly outlined “next steps” for your business.
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