Despite recent improvements, the construction sector grapples with rising mental health challenges, necessitating swift action to address root causes and implement effective solutions
Over the past couple of years, many industries have seen an increase in mental health issues following a combination of causes including the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis. When employees struggle with their mental health this can affect their experience at work or, as often happens in construction, disrupt the collaborative nature of a team. This leads to reduced satisfaction at work; potentially affecting their mental health even further.
With an overwhelmingly male-dominated workforce, until more recently, the construction industry has avoided mental health discussions and shied away from opening up and talking about mental health issues.
Thankfully, this is improving, and mental health is more of a topic of discussion within the workplace; however, there’s still a long way to go. Construction-focused mental health charity Lighthouse Club currently receives more than 400 calls to its 24/7 helpline a month as of the end of 2023, increasing from an average of 230 per month in 2022.
Faced with higher-than-average male suicide rates, the industry is in desperate need of effective solutions that address the root causes of poor mental health.
Incorporating open strategies
With nearly 85% of the construction workforce being male, it’s important that HR departments consider how to tackle different employees in different ways. For example, office and factory staff will have different mental health needs.
Employers now recognise that encouraging staff members to be open and honest is key to providing the support needed. This can include taking the initiative to implement an employee assistance programme, open to all staff, or simply signposting employees to confidential third-party support lines, such as Mates in Mind or Lighthouse.
This enables employees to have access to 24/7 support – including the ability to contact line managers, arrange leave and 1-2-1 counselling. Integrating day-to-day administrative tasks and mental health support, can help to reduce the stigma around using these services.
In addition to this, on site counselling services involving a qualified counsellor who is present on a regular basis, for example, once a month for the whole day, mean that any employee is able to approach support on their own terms.
With factory or on-site individuals, companies often find that these types of support are used more widely; therefore, it’s paramount that these individuals know that this support is available and how to access it.
Enforcing internal mental health training
Mental health can be challenging to address, due to so many variables. Some people can easily open up, while other people struggle to. In addition to this, some individuals are more astute to picking up when something is wrong with someone else, whereas others are not.
Because of this, mental health training in the workplace is essential. It allows personnel to become more aware of and pick up warning signs, helping to let employees know that they’re supported and point them in the right direction to get help.
Mental health first aiders don’t necessarily need to be leaders or managers; they’ll be individuals who care about mental health and are nominated or chosen to support mental health by others due to their attributes.
Regular training is a key element to ensuring mental health first aiders can offer the most effective support across a business with up-to-date advice on where colleagues can get the best support for their particular issue.
Encouraging personal growth
When someone is struggling mentally, engaging in the workplace can be difficult. However, an environment where growth is prioritised is key to supporting those with mental health issues, helping them to feel fulfilled and develop, even when they’re feeling despondent.
One way this can be done is by implementing a nine-grid assessment that is monitored by both the HR team and line managers. This method visually maps employees’ work performance against progression markers, which allows managers to plan and encourage individual development.
In addition to encouraging growth, this also enables companies to monitor individuals, making it easier for line managers and HR to notice if someone is acting differently and offer support.
Providing accessible support
To further improve employee engagement levels, companies should focus on providing accessible support for four aspects: personal emotional well-being, workplace emotional well-being, physical well-being, and financial well-being.
Examples of some engaging mental health support that companies could implement include access to a short daily podcast at the start of each day. This could give employees advice about mental health enhancers, such as sleep patterns, for example. To ensure maximum accessibility, this should be available to download on phones.
Other support can be provided through offering healthier meals such as fruit and veg in the office and site canteens. As well as building garden beds and bird boxes in outdoor areas, enabling employees to plant and harvest, as connecting with nature has been proven to enhance mental wellbeing.
Support for these four aspects will, in turn, create more engagement, collaboration, and stronger team dynamics within the workplace.
Actioning change for the future
The government’s Levelling Up white paper aims for an improvement in wellbeing in all areas by 2023. However, as the UK’s mental health crisis is increasing, more support for employees is needed to achieve this target.
Companies should continually invest in people, providing regular mental health, awareness and communication training to prioritise employee support and encourage growth – both personally and professionally.
Annelee Roscoe
HR and ESG director
