Prevention, promotion and guidance for your workplace
Today in Canada one in fivepeople are living with a mental health problem or illness. The accommodation and food services, government services, and information and culture industries have the highest prevalence of mental illness. Specifically, the accommodation and food services industry is one of the top three highest for generalized anxiety disorder and has the second-highest prevalence of mood disorders. Overall, rates of depression are highest in industries that have the most interaction with the public or with clients.
“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
Although mental health problems are not necessarily the fault of the workplace, the workplace can always be part of the solution. Protecting your workers’ health and safety, which includes their psychological health and safety, is the employer’s responsibility, and that isn’t going away. The impact of the legislation changes has already been felt. Physical injuries with a psychological component have tripled in cost in the service and hospitality industries.
500,000 Canadians, in any given week, are unable to work due to mental health problems or Illnesses.
What is a Psychologically Healthy & Safe Workplace?
“a workplace that promoted workers’ psychological well-being and actively works to prevent harm to worker psychological health including in negligent, reckless, or intentional ways” CSA standard, Psychological health and safety in the workplace
The Saskatchewan Story
In 2016, the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board changed their stance on the acceptance of psychological injury claims. A rebuttable presumption was added to make it easier for workers to prove their psychological injury occurred at work. This presumption also allows for a simpler connection between physical injuries and their psychological component.
Below is a collection of resources to help build, support, and improve your psychological health and safety program. For more information about any of these topics, pleasecontact Service Hospitality.
What You Can Do:
Connect:
Service Hospitality has assembled a working group with a mission to work together to implement best practices and positive change for mental health, safety, and claims management. This group collectively discusses practices and policies and offers training and resources to help promote psychological health and prevent psychological harm due to workplace factors. Join our Mental Health Best Practice Group
The gold standard for psychological health and safety in Saskatchewan
Sit at a table with 100 leaders from across the province (made up of Saskatchewan organizations from service, hospitality, government, education, safety, construction, and more)!
3 meetings per year that include cutting-edge speakers from across Canada.
Already have a Safety Management System, but want to make sure it covers psychological health and safety as well? We can help you take your health and safety management system to the NEXT level!
CSA Standard on Psychological Health & Safety in the Workplace
Compliance with this standard is voluntary and can be done incrementally. Choose which pieces are important for your business to succeed.
Service Hospitality Audit
Compare what you have in place with the CSA Standard through Service Hospitality’s audit.
Audits result in an individualized action plan with clearly outlined “next steps” for your business.
To Teach:
We are pleased to announce our partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association -Saskatchewan Division. Working together, we have created a presentation for Grade 7 & 8 students to bring awareness to youth about anxiety, how it can affect their (and others’) mental health, and the resources available to help. For more information or to book a presentation, visit the webpage here.
To Read:
For an outline of the Workers’ Compensation Board’s legislation and policies on psychological injury claims, we have put together some information. For more information on the law, the WCB process, or claims management, please contact us.
Crisis Text Line powered by Kids Help Phone– by texting CONNECT to 686868, you can chat confidentially with a trained, volunteer Crisis Responder for support with any issue – big or small.
WorkSafe Saskatchewan– Online training options about mental health that include awareness, communication strategies, and health and wellness strategies. Free posters are also available for order (or to print).
Mobile Crisis Reginaor Mobile Crisis Saskatoon– The Mobile Crisis website has links and phone numbers to many helplines, including the crisis suicide line and the rural support line.
Accommodating Mental Injuries/Illnesses– information on the legal duty to accommodate, as well as strategies to help with successful accommodation for all involved parties.
Supporting Employee Success (Accommodation Tool) – This tool consults with the employer, the employee, and the employee’s doctor. They work together to determine the mental demands of the job and what the employee’s current abilities are. These three parties can work together to set up an accommodation that meets the three criteria for workplace accommodation:
Productive work for the business
Within the worker’s skills/abilities
Within the worker’s medical restrictions
Guarding Minds at Work– this site has access to a baseline assessment survey, but also a ton of great resources. Simply look through the workplace factors and click which PDFs you would like to download.
Hale Health & Safety Consulting – Expert articles and blog posts from an expert in the field, plus access to a collection of courses that tackle some of the biggest mental health-related challenges facing employers.
Bridges Health– a local organization that offers consulting and programs for employers regarding psychological health and safety
Saskatchewan Health Care Facilities Search– Government of Saskatchewan website that allows a quick location search to find health centers close to your location. This includes addictions and mental health resource centers.
Online Therapy Unit– Provides individuals with online services regarding mental health, the option to enroll for courses as an educator, and to find other relevant resources.
Stay In Touch: