Providing a healthy and safe workplace benefits all workers, including those with mental illness. It also makes good business sense:

Mental illness is more prevalent than many people realise. Around 45% of Australians aged between 16 and 85 will experience a mental illness at some point in their life, while one in five Australian adults will experience a mental illness in any given year.[1]

It is often presumed that a worker’s mental illness develops outside of the workplace. However, an ‘unhealthy’ work environment or a workplace incident can cause considerable stress and exacerbate, or contribute to, the development of mental illness.

Research indicates that ‘job stress and other work-related psychosocial hazards are emerging as the leading contributors to the burden of occupational disease and injury’.[2]

• A total of 3.2 days per worker are lost each year through workplace stress [3]
• Stress-related workers’ compensation claims have doubled in recent years, costing over $10 billion each year [4]
• A survey of over 5000 workers indicated that 25% of workers took time off each year for stress-related reasons [5]
• In relation to psychological injury claims, work pressure accounts for around half of all claims and harassment and bullying for around a quarter of claims [6]
• Preliminary research shows that Australian businesses lose over $6.5 billion each year by failing to provide early intervention/treatment for employees with mental health conditions.

At Country Counselling, we know that a happy, healthy workforce is essential for any business. That's why we offer employee assistance programme (EAP) counselling services to help your team manage stress, anxiety, depression, and other mental health concerns. With our personalised, confidential counselling services, your employees can get the support they need to feel more productive, engaged, and satisfied at work. From stress management to conflict resolution, we're here to help your team thrive.