Ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day (on Sunday 10 September), SHP hears from Group Risk Development (GRiD),the industry body for the group risk sector, on the importance of employers communicating support for mental health clearly and regularly.
It’s crucial that communication includes alerting employees to the availability of support and how to access it confidentially and independently, outside of office hours.
Katharine Moxham, spokesperson for GRiD, said: “Even the most comprehensive of employer support programmes for mental health issues will not save a life if it is not communicated regularly so staff know how to access it in their darkest hour.”
World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD) was established in 2003 by the International Association for Suicide Prevention in conjunction with the World Health Organization (WHO). The 10 September each year aims to focus attention on the issue, reduces stigma and raises awareness among organizations, governments, and the public, giving a singular message that suicides are preventable.
Further reading: Workplace wellbeing charity says communication key in suicide prevention
While some employers may have specific suicide-prevention schemes in place or provide other bespoke support, most employers who offer group risk benefits (employer-sponsored life assurance, income protection and critical illness) are likely to find that they have a range of support included as standard.
This includes a wide and varied approach for the individual and the business, as Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs) are usually embedded into the benefits, as is other mental health support, including early intervention, fast access to talking therapies, signposting to mental health first aid training, ongoing regular support and contact.
While suicide prevention may not be the primary reason for the purchase of employee benefits, the products and services have evolved to provide vital support for those employees who are suffering from stress, anxiety or depression.
Employers have a duty to ensure they promote this aspect of their benefits packages so employees can access the support that’s been designed for them.
Sadly, the group risk industry knows just how serious an issue suicide is: data from GRiD’s Claims Survey 2023 shows that under Group Life Assurance policies, insurers paid 436 claims for suicide in 2022. While the financial support payable after a suicide is a help for the loved one’s dependants, employers have many powerful tools at their fingertips to help prevent these tragedies in the first place.
Katharine Moxham concluded: “I’m proud to represent an industry that offers such wide-ranging support to those struggling with their mental health. However, these measures have a limited chance of success if employees are not clear about what is available and how to access that support when they most need it.
“This World Suicide Prevention Day, where the theme is “creating hope through action”, we would encourage employers act by taking the time to review their communications around mental health support, as it could genuinely save an employee’s life and help put them back on the road to recovery. Suicide is never an inevitability.”
Further reading:
In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, ‘Burnout, stress and being human’, Heather Beach is joined by Stacy Thomson to discuss burnout, perfectionism and how to deal with burnout as an individual, as management and as an organisation.
We provide an insight on how to tackle burnout and why mental health is such a taboo subject, particularly in the workplace.
