icare has released a world first study into psychological safety in the workplace.
In partnership with suicide prevention charity R U OK?, the study found that frontline, lower income earners feel less safe and permitted to takes risks at work than higher paid staff.
The Australian Workplace Psychological Safety Survey canvassed 1,176 employees across Australia and found that 23% of lower income-earning frontline staff felt their workplace was psychologically safe compared to 45% of those on high incomes.
With one in five people in Australia experiencing a mental health issue at some point in their lifetime, statistics from Safe Work Australia found that 7,500 Australians are compensated for work-related mental health issues, equating to 6% of workers’ comp claims.
Approximately $480 million is paid in workers’ compensation for work-related mental health issues.
Vivek Bhatia, icare CEO, said that untreated mental illness costs Australian businesses $11 billion each year off their bottom lines due to absenteeism, lost productivity, stymied business growth and compensation claims.
“Employee mental wellbeing must be at the top of every CEO’s agenda,” Bhatia said. “An investment in psychological wellness is an investment for now and the future.”
Bhatia urged all employers to ensure that employees have a mentally safe work environment where staff feels comfortable to talk about how they are doing.
Bhatia also noted that businesses should look beyond the workplace, as mental health issues have a knock-on effect on the personal lives of employees.
The two organisations held a breakfast event in Sydney to launch the report, which saw more than 200 CEOs and senior leaders from Australian businesses, the public sector and NGOs come together to discuss the survey findings.
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