Racialized people and mental health in the workplace: solutions
Once we’ve established the facts, we need to ask ourselves: what can be done to meet the needs of people experiencing psychological difficulties in the workplace? There are a number of solutions that seem to be bearing fruit.
How companies can better support the mental health of racialized people
Faced with the mental health challenges experienced by racialized employees, what needs to be done to best manage the issue of mental health in the workplace? Inclusive leadership and startups and NPOs show us that solutions exist.
Corporate measures for better mental health support
As mentioned in the previous article, the role of the manager is crucial to better management of employees’ mental health. This requires more inclusive leadership, which can be seen in a number of ways:
Evaluating benefits
For example, the introduction of physical activities to contribute to employees’ personal and professional development. This can take the form of setting up a company gym or reimbursing gym memberships. It can also be included in the employee assistance program.
Help to prevent burnout
This can take the form of personalized or group support, online or face-to-face, with a human resources representative or health professional. It can take the form of training courses on the theme of mental health. For example, understanding what burnout is. It can also mean ensuring that there is no professional overload. We can promote the right to disconnect, i.e. not being connected to professional digital tools (telephone, e-mail) outside working hours.
Consideration of concrete measures
Such as creating additional support for employees from diverse backgrounds to take account of specific realities. This can be expressed in the creation of safe spaces for minority and racialized people. These enable a situation of comfort and security to be created, while at the same time being protected from the opinions of non-racialized communities. These spaces make it easier for people to speak out, and can also create a sense of psychological safety, listening and mutual understanding between them. This can be achieved by setting up employee resource groups‧es (ERGs) in specific rooms (face-to-face or online). In this way, we enable these safe and caring spaces within companies.
Training for a more inclusive culture: understanding the realities of racialized people
An overhaul of organizational culture is also needed to facilitate better inclusion and support for racialized people facing mental health issues in the workplace. This could mean setting up training courses (on the basics of DEI or unconscious bias) to help both employers and employees understand the realities they face.
We also recommend encouraging the practice of non-violent communication, which, among other things, makes it possible to broach sensitive subjects and feel comfortable while avoiding conflict. By allowing open and caring conversations, employees and managers can then exchange on issues experienced and co-create solutions.
Unconscious bias training is another solution too. These, for example, will focus on the reproduction of forms of domination or stereotypes towards racialized people in order to explain and deconstruct them.
These are just some of the examples that can be applied to the company’s new organizational culture. The aim of this type of training is to deconstruct these issues in order to better understand the realities of racialized people and minorities. A better understanding then leads to proactivity in establishing a pro-mental health action plan. In this way, we can better understand and support people in managing their mental health. It also enables managers to become aware of their impact on the mental well-being of their employees. In this way, they can modify the company’s organizational culture to make it more inclusive in the long term.
Startups and NPOs to meet corporate needs in mental health management
In the wake of the health crisis, a number of mental health-related startups have sprung up around the world. We’d like to introduce you to two of them.
This is the case of Inpowr, whose aim is to help companies manage their mental health by developing a scale. This scale assesses physical, mental and social well-being, to help achieve a better balance between personal and professional life. By interpreting the data collected, employers can take concrete action. It can also be used to analyze psychosocial risk factors in the workplace. Drawing on technology and research, Inpowr works closely with the world of research.
Startup Arborescence targets managers and human resources personnel. This NPO offers support in understanding the realities of psychological difficulties in the workplace. Arborescence is an expert in corporate mental health management, with 43 years’ experience in the field. The results attest to its success: in a survey of their clients, the organization noted “a 35% increase in well-being among the people they support. They feel better equipped to support their colleagues in psychological difficulty (8.33 out of 10)”.
These two examples illustrate the growing interest of SMEs in managing the mental health of their employees, particularly racialized people. There is a concern to take into account the needs of both employers and employees. The aim is also to optimize mental health management and support.
Additional resources
Relief‧ca – Organization focused on self-management of mental health (anxiety, depression or even bipolarity). Offers coaching as well as training and workshops to individuals and companies.
Entredeuxoreilles‧ca – Multi-platform in the form of blogs and podcasts. Combats taboos and prejudices about mental health.
Boutique‧desaison‧ca – Company supporting individuals and professionals in managing mental health. That involves flexibility, work-life balance or psychological health.
For racialized people
Alter-natives‧ca – Center for racialized professionals specializing in mental health support and management. For people from different ethnocultural communities in Montreal.
Blackhealingfund.com – Montreal volunteer initiative. Aimed at low-income black people in support of mental health and well-being.
Maisonmyosotis.org – Non-profit organization offering low-cost mental health care services.
****
Article written by Michelle Martineau, external consultant specializing in DEI issues
- Equality vs. Equity: it’s not about discrimination, it’s about different needs! - 17 September 2024
- Case study: BAnQ - 28 August 2024
- Case study: À GO, on lit ! - 28 August 2024