Question

Some of the mental health issues we see in the workplace include stress, depression, anxiety, alcoholism, and chemical dependence. What risk does one or more of these mental illnesses cause for employees?

Answer 1

Workplace related mental illness is a serious issue afflicting the modern society with millions suffering from them.Billions of-of dollars are being spent on employee welfare especially related to mental illnesses, in prevention, cure, and rehabilitation

Inter-linkage- The illnesses stated above – stress, anxiety, substance abuse etc, are inter-linked with each other and one illness enhancing the development of other for e.g. depression leads to alcoholism and vice versa. One disorder increases the risk of developing others

Productivity risk- All the above led to an obvious falling productivity of employees with an increased number of absence, decreased cognition abilities etc. Drug dependency also increase the possibility for dismissal from the job

Health- Physical health deterioration is an obvious consequence. It is a known fact that depression leads to obesity. Also, work stress leads to decreased physical activity resulting in chronic illnesses like hypertension, heart disease, diabetes etc. The disorders also lead to musculoskeletal injuries. The morbidity rate of employees also increase

Social exclusion - Depressed people and drug dependents tend to move away from society and lose their social life. Social behavior also gets modified resulting in exclusion. Loss of self-confidence is another issue

Financial risk – A very common consequence is depressed people tend to lose a lot of money on addictive behaviors apart from spending for health issues.

Family and relationships-Not to mention, workplace illness severely affects the family of those affected employees. This leads to relationship issues, financial difficulties and long-term issues for family and friends