Workplace Mental

Health Toolkit
Practical Guide & Resources
Workplace Mental Health Toolkit

This mental health toolkit has been developed by the Black Dog Institute as a practical guide for Australian
workers to assist them in understanding common mental health issues in the workplace, and to provide strategies
and resources to support those who may be experiencing a mental health condition.

About the Black Dog Institute

Black Dog Institute is a global pioneer in the identification, prevention and treatment of mental illness and the
promotion of well-being. We are dedicated to improving the lives of people affected by mental illness through rapid
translation of scientific evidence into improved clinical management and sustainable public health solutions.

Our unique approach combines medicine with research, education and the voice of lived experience to reduce the
incidence of mental illness and suicide, remove stigma and improve lives. We work with organisations to design and
develop mental health policies, training and resources to support staff and managers.

Workplace Programs
The Black Dog Institute strives to make Australian workplaces mentally healthier through the translation of research
into practical interventions. Our experts have researched the relationship between mental health and work, and
provided innovative reports aimed at assisting businesses to implement workplace policies and procedures. From
interactive training programs to guidelines to e-learning tools, the Black Dog Institute is at the forefront of mental
health intervention and education.

Training covers a number of topics including understanding mental health, getting help & providing support, building
resilience, and managing mental health during change.

Our programs provide:

• fully customised and contextualised training appropriate to your business

• interactive face-to-face workshops
• practical skills based training for dealing with mental health issues in the workplace
• qualified mental health professionals to deliver the training
• vesatile session lengths depending on your objectives and requirements

To find out how the Black Dog Institute can work with you to improve mental health in your workplace:

• visit the workplace programs page on our website

• or send an email to [email protected]

Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources | 2

 Mental health and the workplace

What is mental health?

The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines mental health as ‘a state of well-being in which every individual
realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and is
able to make a contribution to her or his community’.

Mental illness can affect anyone, of any age and background. However, with support most people can and do recover.
Achieving and maintaining good mental health and wellbeing is important for everyone.

How common are mental health issues?

Mental health is everyone’s business. It is estimated that, at any point in time, 1 in
6 working age people will be suffering from mental illness. A further one-sixth of
the population will be suffering from symptoms associated with mental ill health,
such as worry, sleep problems and fatigue, which, while not meeting criteria for a
diagnosed mental illness, will be affecting their ability to function at work.

Given the statistics, it is likely that you will come across mental illness in your
workplace.

What does mental illness cost?

Mental illness is associated with high levels of presenteeism, where an employee
remains at work despite experiencing symptoms resulting in lower levels of
productivity. Economic analyses consistently show that mental health conditions,
such as depression and anxiety, are costing Australian businesses about $11 billion
dollars each year through absenteeism, reduced work performance, increased
turnover rates and compensation claims.

What is the role of work in mental health and wellbeing?

Research has highlighted that work can be beneficial for an individual’s overall
wellbeing, particularly if good quality supervision is present and there are
favourable workplace conditions.

In addition, researchers have found that individuals frequently identify work as

providing several important outcomes including a sense of purpose, acceptance
within society and opportunities for development and that it may therefore play a
pivotal role in a person’s recovery from mental health difficulties.

The majority of mental illness seen in the workplace is treatable and in some cases may be preventable. The
consequences of mental disorders can be reduced through appropriate support and clinical treatment. Employers
and workplaces can play an active and significant role in maintaining the health and wellbeing of their workers as well
as assisting in recovery from mental health issues.

Myths and facts

Myths about mental illness are common and can be extremely damaging. Reducing stigma through understanding the
truth about mental illness leads to better outcomes for everyone.

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Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources | 4
 Stress, depression and anxiety
What is stress?
Stress is often confused with anxiety, but it is not a diagnosable mental illness. It is a ‘normal’ condition, experienced
by everyone, and involves an emotional, physical or mental response to events that cause bodily or mental tension.
It can therefore be thought of as a state of ‘readiness’ – involving both physical and psychological responses and is
associated with arousal – the “fight or flight” response. Within limits, stress has positive effects on motivation and
performance, enabling us to meet deadlines, think and respond quickly.

Too little stress can cause problems. For example, it might be hard to motivate yourself to complete a task if there
is no deadline to work towards. Too little stress can also allow time for negative ruminations, feelings of not making
progress or failure, reduce the amount of positive feedback (internal or external) and lower the sense of personal
satisfaction. All of which can contribute to mental health issues.

Too much stress though and performance deteriorates. When stress is sustained for too long a period, health can also
deteriorate. Research studies have now shown a direct link between chronic exposure to stress, prolonged activation
of the body’s normal physiological stress response and increased risk of depression and anxiety.

What is depression?
We all feel sad, moody or low from time to time, but some people experience these feelings intensely, for long
periods of time and sometimes for no apparent reason. 1 in 6 people will experience depression during their lifetime.
Depression influences not only how you feel but also how you think, behave and interact with other people.

Common signs of depression include:

• lowered self-esteem or self-worth

• change in sleep patterns, insomnia or broken sleep

• changes in appetite or weight

• less ability to control emotions such as pessimism, anger, guilt,

irritability and anxiety

• varying emotions throughout the day, for example, feeling worse in

the morning and better as the day progresses

• reduced capacity to experience pleasure: you can’t enjoy what’s

happening now, nor look forward to anything with pleasure

• reduced pain tolerance: you are less able to tolerate aches and pains
and may have a host of new ailments

• reduced or absent sex drive

• poor concentration and memory

• reduced motivation: it doesn’t seem worth the effort to do anything, things seem meaningless

• lowered energy levels

If these signs persist for most of the day for most days over a two week period, and they interfere with your ability to
manage at home and at work, then you might benefit from getting an assessment by a skilled professional.

5 | Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources

Video
What does depression
feel like?

click to play

Depression self-test Click here to take our discreet

Do you think you may have depression? online depression self-test

What is anxiety?
Just as there are times when you might feel down, but are not clinically depressed, there are times when you
will feel anxious, but do not have an anxiety disorder. It’s normal to feel anxious in high pressure situations
such as a job interview, when you’re speaking in public, or when you’re experiencing change in your life
or work environment and you’re uncertain what the future will hold. To a degree, this anxiety can help us,
making us stay focussed and alert.

Anxiety becomes a problem when you start to feel anxious most of the time and about even minor things, to
the point where your worry is out of control and interfering with your day to day life.

Anxiety disorders are a mix of:

• psychological symptoms: frequent or excessive worry, poor concentration, specific fears or phobias e.g.
fear of dying or fear of losing control

• physical symptoms: fatigue, irritability, sleeping difficulties, general restlessness, muscle tension, upset
stomach, sweating and difficulty breathing

• behavioural changes: including procrastination, avoidance, difficulty making decisions and social
withdrawal

To be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, a combination of symptoms is present on most days for more than
six months and interferes with your ability to function at work or at home.

It is common to experience a low mood secondary to excessive worry and the two conditions - clinical
depression and anxiety disorder can occur at the same time.

Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources | 6

 Video
What does anxiety
feel like?

click to play

Changes in behaviour
If you notice any change in behaviour or performance in a colleague or team member always consider whether it is
due to a mental health issue. The types of changes in behaviour could include some of the following:

• change in routines (stopping participation in sport, social activities)

• talking about unusual/disturbing thoughts
• reporting or demonstrating symptoms associated with high levels of anxiety and/or lowered mood
• lowered concentration and performance
• reduced motivation
• increased absenteeism
• social withdrawal or isolation
• decreased personal care
• use of drugs (illegal and/or legal) or alcohol
• reduced activity and energy
• high levels of irritability or aggression
If you see changes like these, and you feel you can talk to person because you know them well or you have some
responsibility for them, don’t be afraid to ask if things are OK. They might want to talk – or they might not – but just
letting someone know that you’ve noticed and that you care can make an enormous difference.

Video
Talking about
lived experience

click to play

7 | Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources

Having a conversation about
mental health
Keeping in touch
Regular, simple, informal conversations help build a sense of belonging and connectedness which has been shown to
promote wellbeing. Find the time to ask about the weekend, have a chat about what you watched last night, ask how
the holiday went. Or just ask how things are going.

Checking in regularly with our colleagues and team members also means that we are more likely to notice when
things are different or their behaviour changes. It can make the person we’re talking to more open to sharing
information with us, and make a ‘difficult’ conversation easier because you’ve already shown that you’re interested
and care.

Having the conversation

If you notice a change in a colleague or team member’s behaviour or performance ask yourself if it might be due to an
underlying personal or mental health issue, and if you think this is a possibility then why not have a conversation and
ask how the person is going?

Keep these handy pointers in mind:

• choose a time and a place that suits you both – somewhere private when you both have time to talk
• talk about the changes you’ve noticed and ask if they want to talk about anything
• encourage them to talk, but accept that they might not want to right now
• listen and show that you’re listening – don’t jump in with a solution
• find out if they’re ready to look for help and if you can help them do that
• check in after a few days and see how they’re going

R U OK? Click here to go to R U OK

Some tips on starting a conversation

Video
Top tips

click to play

Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources | 8

 What help is available?

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Rights and responsibilities
Both employers and employees have formal rights and responsibilities under discrimination, privacy, and
work health and safety legislation.

Employers
Under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 workplaces need to prevent harm to the health and safety
of workers. This includes physical and mental health. Under the Act, an officer is a person who makes, or
participates in making decisions that affect the whole, or a substantial part, of a business or undertaking.
Officers have a duty to be proactive and continuously ensure that the business or undertaking complies with
relevant duties and obligations.

An employer must not discriminate against, harass or victimise a person in employment because they have a
mental illness.

Employees

What are my rights?

The right to protection from discrimination

If you have a mental health condition, certain laws protect you against discrimination in the workplace. The
Australia-wide Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) and equivalent state and territory laws make it
unlawful to discriminate against, harass or victimise people with disabilities – including in an employment
context.

The right to privacy

Your right to privacy is covered by the Australia-wide Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and similar legislation in some
states and territories. If you tell your employer you have a mental health condition, they can’t disclose this
information to anyone without your consent. They can only use this information for the purpose for which
you told them, such adjusting your role or working environment to make allowances for your mental health
condition.

The right to a healthy, safe workplace

Workplace health and safety legislation requires employers to ensure that workplaces are both physically
and mentally healthy for all employees. This means steps must be taken to ensure that the working
environment does not harm mental wellbeing or aggravate an existing condition.

Under each state’s work health and safety (WH&S) legislation, your employer is obligated, so far as is
reasonably practicable, to provide a safe and healthy workplace. This means they must take action to
prevent or lessen potential risks to the health and safety of you and your colleagues, including your mental
wellbeing.

What are my responsibilities?

If your mental health condition does not affect how you do your job, you have no legal obligation to tell your
employer about it. This applies whether you are a current employee, or a potential employee going through
the recruitment process.

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 WH&S laws protect your right to a safe workplace, but you also have responsibilities under the same
legislation. You must take care of yourself and others and cooperate with your employer in matters of health
and safety. This applies to all workers, whether they have a disability or not.

As well as this, under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) your ability to work safely is an ‘inherent’
or essential requirement of any job. If your disability could reasonably be seen to create a health and safety
risk for other people at work, then your failure to tell anyone about that risk could be a breach of your
obligations under WH&S legislation.

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Talking about mental health at work
There is no obligation to tell your employer about a mental health condition if it does not affect how well you do your
job. You need to tell your employer when your mental health condition:

• affects how you carry out the inherent requirements of your job. In this context, the purpose of providing the
information is to enable your employer to identify reasonable adjustments that might assist you to perform your
role.
• affects your health and safety and/or the health and safety of colleagues.
• is affected or could be affected by the nature of your work. A failure to disclose a mental illness may disentitle an
employee to workers compensation should they suffer any recurrence, aggravation or exacerbation of a pre-
existing mental illness.

Video
Did you tell someone
about your mental health
issues?

click to play

Heads Up pros & cons tool Click here to use the Heads Up
Uncertain about disclosing to your employer? pros and cons tool

Reasonable adjustments
Generally, employers have a positive obligation to make reasonable adjustments for employees and prospective
employees experiencing a mental illness. Making reasonable adjustments to work for someone experiencing a period
of mental ill health is a legal obligation of all employers and can greatly assist the employee in remaining at work. A
failure to make reasonable adjustments for an employee or prospective employee experiencing mental illness can
constitute discrimination.

Reasonable adjustments are changes to a job, which can be made to enable a worker to perform their duties more
effectively. Employers are required to make reasonable adjustments for workers experiencing a mental illness, unless:

• the employee could not or cannot adequately perform the inherent requirements of the employment even after
the adjustments are made; or
• making the adjustments would impose an unjustifiable hardship on the employer.

Reasonable adjustments can include changes to the work environment, the work you do, your workload or hours, or
the amount of supervision and support you need.

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 Staying at work
It may seem logical to think that time off work is the best solution for anyone with a mental health issue, but
in fact this is not always the case. Most people with mild to moderate mental health issues can function at
work, perhaps with some reasonable adjustment to their duties, and benefit from being there. The benefits
include:

• remaining part of a larger whole (belonging is an important component of resilience)

• avoiding isolation at home

• maintaining some productivity and sense of achievement

• providing a healthy distraction

• maintaining a routine

• better monitoring of progress

• visible support from peers and management

• resolution of precipitating and exacerbating issues in the workplace, leading to less ‘mental scar tissue’
relating to the work situation

• avoiding the need for a return to work after a period of absence, during which fears about the likely
reactions of others may have developed or misperceptions may have increased

• increasing commitment to the organisation in that its efforts to assist are clearly visible

An employee should not stay at work when s/he is:

• at risk of self-harming or suicidal behaviour

• a danger to others. The organisation has a duty of care to all of its employees and should a person’s
mental illness result in behaviour that poses a risk to others, s/he should not remain in the workplace
until the episode is contained
• showing signs of psychosis (e.g. delusions of grandeur, paranoia, hearing voices etc)
• is suffering from very deep depression, often characterised by psychomotor slowing, which severely
impacts upon concentration, motivation, productivity and capacity to control emotions
• very agitated and is unable to control emotions
• behaving in a way that is significantly affecting other employees and reasonable adjustment is
impossible or does not improve the situation

Video
How can a workplace
help?

click to play

13 | Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources

Staying well
Keeping the team healthy
If you’re a team leader or a team member, there are things you can do to promote mental health and wellbeing.
Research shows that the way our jobs are designed, our organisations are structured and function, and the support
we receive in the teams where we work are important factors in developing a mentally healthy workplace. Here are
some things you can do:

• if you’re a team leader, build an ongoing feedback loop. Take time to have regular, informal conversations with
each member of your team. Regular feedback rather than the ‘Annual Review’ is more likely to help them feel
valued. It also allows you more opportunity to get to know them as individuals, and makes it more likely that you
will a) notice changes in behavior and performance earlier on if they arise and b) feel more comfortable asking
about their wellbeing and mental health.

• everyone benefits by being clear about their role. A key component of workplace stress is a lack of role clarity.
Find regular opportunities to discuss tasks and what’s expected.
• encourage trusting and respectful communications. Always hold sensitive conversations in places that provide
privacy and respect.
• make work meaningful. Having regular conversations about how individual roles contribute towards the overall
direction of the organisation can help people feel more connected.
• set the standard. If you witness or hear behaviour or conversations that are inappropriate, intervene promptly.
• be aware of the behaviour you model and the messages you send – whether you are a team leader or a team
member – both in what you physically do and how you communicate.
• acknowledge good work and practice in your team.
• offer support through organisational resources and access those resources yourself.

Video
Keeping your team
healthy

click to play

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 Five Ways to Wellbeing
Wellbeing is generally thought to be made up of two main components: feeling good and functioning well. Feeling
good can include feelings of happiness, contentment, enjoyment, curiosity and engagement – all of which contribute
to a positive experience of life. Functioning well can include experiencing positive relationships, having some control
over one’s life and having a sense of purpose.

The Five Ways to Wellbeing are a set of evidence-based actions which promote people’s wellbeing. They were
developed from research conducted by over 400 experts in psychology, psychiatry, neuroscience, education, and
economics from across the world who reviewed current knowledge on mental health and well-being. The Five Ways
to Wellbeing are: Connect, Be Active, Take Notice, Keep Learning and Give. These activities are simple things
individuals can do in their everyday lives.

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Online resources
There are a number of Black Dog Institute online programs, tools and apps available. The programs are evidenced
based and supported by research data.

myCompass
A fully automated, online self-help treatment program for stress,
anxiety and depression, myCompass delivers personalised
cognitive behavioural therapy. The program is suitable for
patients aged 18+ with mild to moderate symptoms. myCompass
users carry out real-time monitoring of symptoms and lifestyle,
receive graphical feedback, motivational messages and tips. They
also complete brief psycho-education and skill-building modules.
Alerts recommend more intense intervention, if necessary.
myCompass is accessible via the Internet to patients’ mobile
phones, tablets and desk-top computers. myCompass is free Click here to visit
in Australia. myCompass.org.au

SHUTi
Delivered online and based on cognitive behavioural therapy,
SHUTi helps people with insomnia identify and change the
unhealthy thoughts and behaviours associated with poor
sleep. A recent world-first study led by the Black Dog Institute
conclusively showed that SHUTi not only results in improvements
in insomnia severity, sleep efficiency, sleep onset latency, and
wake after sleep onset, it can also reduce the symptoms of
depression.
SHUTi was developed by Black Dog’s colleagues at the
University of Virginia and is available in Australia at a Click here to gain
discounted cost via the link on the right. access to SHUTi

Black Dog Snapshot

Black Dog Snapshot is a mobile app which provides a quick
assessment of an individual’s general mental health and wellbeing
at any point in time. Based on the person’s answers, it provides
a snapshot of how she/he is travelling compared to other
Australians of the same age and gender. Suggestions are provided
for areas in which the person may not be doing so well.

The Black Dog Snapshot app is free to download by Australian

users and available on the App Store and Google Play.

Mental Health Toolkit - A Practical Guide and Resources | 16

 Emergency support

If you or someone in your workplace is in crisis and you think immediate

action is needed, call emergency services (triple zero - 000), contact your
doctor or local mental health crisis service, or go to your local hospital
emergency department.

Emergency contact information - 24 hours

If you or someone you know needs help, call:
• Emergency on 000 (or 112 from a mobile phone)
• Lifeline on 13 11 14
• Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800
• MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978
• Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467

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