"One in five Canadians experience a mental health problem or mental illness in any given year and many of the most at risk individuals are in their early working years,” says MHCC President and CEO Louise Bradley. “It’s time to start thinking about mental well-being in the same way as we consider physical well-being, and the standard offers the framework needed to help make this happen in the workplace.”
The standard provides a systematic approach to develop and sustain a psychologically healthy and safe workplace, including:
- identification of psychological hazards in the workplace;
- assessment and control of workplace risks associated with hazards that cannot be eliminated (e.g., stressors due to organizational change or reasonable job demands);
- implementation of practices that support and promote psychological health and safety in the workplace;
- growth of a culture that promotes psychological health and safety in the workplace;
- implementation of measurement and review systems to ensure sustainability.
“This voluntary national standard is the result of a
collaborative effort between MHCC, BNQ and CSA Group, and is supported by
scientific literature from many relevant areas of workplace health and safety,
social science and law,” says CSA Group’s Bonnie Rose. “Workplaces with a
positive approach to psychological health and safety have improved employee
engagement, enhanced productivity, and a better financial outlook.”