According to GOV.UK, one in six employees have a mental health condition – with the most common being anxiety and depression. Working conditions and the environment can significantly impact an employee’s mental health. Common factors contributing to poor mental health at work include discrimination and inequality, excessive workloads, a lack of autonomy in someone’s job role and job insecurity. Factors outside work can also impact someone’s mental health. Some examples can include trauma, abuse, bereavement, stigma and discrimination, long-term stress, a long-term physical health condition and being in poverty or debt.
Mental health at work has also been highlighted as a major cause of sickness absence. According to the Health and wellbeing at work report by CIPD and Simply Health in 2023, stress continues to be one of the main causes of short- and long-term absence. The report found that 76% of respondents reported some stress-related absence in their organisation over the last year, which increased to 92% for organisations with more than 250 employees. Common causes were found to be high workloads, management styles, and non-work factors (such as issues with relationships/family).
Taking these figures into account, it is clear more needs to be done to tackle mental health and stress in the workplace.
What are reasonable adjustments at work?
Reasonable adjustments at work refer to accommodations the employer makes to ensure that an individual with disabilities or a health condition is not at a disadvantage, and can perform their job effectively. They are supportive measures that can enable staff to return to work sooner if they are signed off.
Reasonable adjustments could include things such as:
- Modifications to the physical environment, such as providing ergonomic equipment.
- Flexible working arrangements, such as a change to working hours or part-time options.
- Adjusting job responsibilities.
- Providing assistive technology, such as screen readers.
Read more about the Equality Act 2010 and reasonable adjustments at work.
What sort of reasonable adjustments might you consider for mental health?
Recommendations for workplace adjustments regarding mental health can vary. It’s very much about establishing what the employee’s challenges are. For example, if the employee is struggling with stress, clarifying whether it is work-stress, personal stress or a mixture of both, will help you to identify the most appropriate action. Below are a few examples of what reasonable adjustments employers may consider across different scenarios:
- Work-related stress to due to difficulties between colleagues – In this scenario, you may consider getting external mediation support to help resolve the issue. Mediation is used to try to resolve conflict or disagreement by introducing a neutral third party to negotiate an acceptable outcome to an ongoing issue.
- Mental health struggles related to a past trauma – If the issue is to do with a trauma, there may be internal services you can signpost the employee to, such as a trauma support helpline or a mental health referral into occupational health which could help to identify any reasonable adjustments. Flexibility should be considered to allow staff to attend any appointments, such as counselling sessions.
- A significant bereavement in the employee’s family – If an employee has been off work due to a bereavement occupational health can help you to look at reasonable adjustments which can form part of a return-to-work plan and include things such as gradually building up their workload, regular breaks and regular touch-points with the manager – helping the employee to pace themselves. Employers will need to be sensitive, and understand that some days will be more difficult than others, such as anniversaries.
- Work-related stress – In this instance, carrying out a stress risk assessment is a valuable tool. This will help to identify what is contributing to the employee’s stress, what can be done to address the issues, and inform a plan going forward. It can be completed by a manager and employee together, and reviewed on a regular basis to reflect on progress. A stress risk assessment can help to highlight reasonable adjustments, such as changes to the employee’s workload to help relieve some of the pressure. If an employee is signed off with stress, you could consider flexibility getting them back into work i.e. a phased return – starting with reduced hours, then gradually building them up. Flexibility may also be needed to allow the employee to attend therapy, such as counselling or employee assistance programme (EAP) sessions.
If a personal issue is also contributing to the stress, there may be temporary adjustments you could consider, such as family-friendly hours, where the employee doesn’t work lates or is taken off night shifts for an agreed period.
Ultimately, flexibility and an understanding of the employee’s challenges with regards to their job is key. If an employee has been off work for some time, then a phased return-to-work plan can really help to ease the employee back and address any worries or concerns they may have.
Communication is also key throughout the process. Staff may feel isolated or ‘out of the loop’ after not speaking to colleagues for a while, which can make a return-to-work feel more daunting. It may be useful to have a one-to-one meeting before an employee returns – whether at a neutral setting or in the workplace. This can help to ease worry, and support a smooth transition.
How can occupational health support?
Occupational health can offer professional expertise on a range of topics to do with keeping employees safe and healthy in the workplace. This includes advice on things around job roles, absence and assessing risk. Below are some of the key areas occupational health can support with in regards to mental health.
- Advice about reasonable adjustments – There is no fixed description of what reasonable adjustments should be used, and this will need to be looked at on a case-by-case basis. Occupational health can advise on what you could consider, taking into account the type of job role and mental health issue. It is important to note that the employee should be involved in identifying reasonable adjustments, as they know best what will help them to carry out their role effectively. Once reasonable adjustments have been identified, it is up to the employer to review what they can be put in place – which might depend on things such as how much the adjustment will help, how practical it is to make, cost, and how it will affect the employer.
- Support with carrying out a stress risk assessment – A stress risk assessment can be carried out at the point the manager or employer is notified that an employee is struggling with stress. The aim is to facilitate active dialogue about the issues, identify workplace stressors and develop an action plan to try, where possible, to mitigate them. This should be reviewed on a weekly basis, with the action plan being adjusted accordingly. This process should continue for as long as both parties feel it would be beneficial. Occupational health can support you to carry out a stress risk assessment looking at key considerations, and support with actions going forward. If you don’t have an existing templates, you can find some online, such as the HSE stress risk assessment tool.
- Support with a return-to-work plan – Occupational health can advise with putting a return-to-work together. Getting their professional input can ensure that important considerations have not been missed, and that every opportunity has been identified to help an employee to return to work safely and supported. They can also ensure you are compliant from a legal perspective.
- Support with early intervention – Referring into occupational health can help to speed up access to support or treatment. It is down to the employee whether or not they want to reach out for help, and a referral can not be made without the employee’s full consent. It may be in the first instance that they reach out to a supportive service such as an employee assistance programme (EAP) before they speak to their line manager or HR department.
- Self-help resources – Occupational health can also provide self-help resources. For example, this could include access to videos and articles on topics such as looking after your mental wellbeing, physical health and ways to build resilience. These could be shared with the employee to help them look after themselves and support their recovery.
A more complex underlying mental health condition, such as schizophrenia, would require a more in depth care plan. Again, this is something that a referral into occupational health can support with.
In general, don’t forget to signpost the employee to internal support you have in place, such as an employee assistance programme (EAP), access to online CBT sessions, or digital wellbeing apps.
Summary
Stress, anxiety and depression are some of the most common reasons employees are referred into occupational health for mental health support. Using the professional guidance of occupational health teams, employers can put reasonable adjustments in place to support staff during recovery and ease their return to work if they have had time off. It’s important to be aware that little steps can make a big difference to how an employee feels, and putting a plan in place should be a collaborative process between the employee and the manager.
Further support
Acas – Reasonable adjustments for mental health.
Mental Health at Work – Understanding reasonable adjustments in your workplace.
CIPD – Understanding mental health in the workplace.
Sources
www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-health-at-work
www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/mental-health-problems-introduction/causes/
Ref: WPW0281 This information was published February 2024.
